The Franklin News-Post
P. O. Box 250
310 Main Street, SW
Rocky Mount, Virginia 24151
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| Wirtz woman's pigeons have an unusual talent |
The frillback pigeon that Connie Marsh is holding is very rare, she says. The curly feathers give the appearance of a bird just returning from a trip to the beauty salon. |
Monday, August 10, 2009
By CHARLES BOOTHE - Staff Writer
Carrier pigeons may be the most famous variety of the bird, but those who attend this year's Festival on the Crooked Road will see "rolling" pigeons.
As the name implies, these pigeons roll rather than fly.
Connie Marsh of Wirtz raises these "parlor rollers," birds bred in the mid-1850s in England and in this country, she said.
"There is a breed that rolls in mid-flight, and these were bred from that variety," she said, explaining that the flying rollers will, while in the air, suddenly start tumbling backwards, dropping a distance before taking flight again.
The parlor rollers probably received that name because they could provide entertainment in people's living rooms, she said.
Marsh demonstrated the distinctive talent outside her house on the grass. Pigeon in hand facing her, with a little nudge the bird did a sort of back-flip and rolled, or tumbled, on the grass backwards, making quite a few turns before stopping.
In fact, according a website on parlor rollers, the world record distance for a roll stands at 662 feet. The average roll is between 20 and 30 feet, and competitions are often held with prizes for the longest rollers.
Marsh, a Pennsylvania native who moved to Franklin County nine years ago, is not after a world record. Rather, she said she breeds them because she loves pigeons and enjoys showing them to people.
"I like to take the various breeds to festivals to let people know about the hobby," she said.
That's why she will have her parlor rollers at the Franklin Street Festival on the Crooked Road, set for Saturday, Aug. 29 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
With 13 varieties and about 100 pigeons, she has plenty to show besides the parlor rollers.
One of the most unusual breeds is the "frillback" pigeon, which has curly feathers, giving it the appearance of a curly-haired bird.
"These are hard to find," she said. "I have two males but no females, so I need to find a female."
That will mean a trip to Louisville, Ky., where she found the males.
Marsh said she took an interest in pigeons when she was teenager mainly because she has always been a bird lover.
A member of the Roanoke Valley Bird Club and the Richmond Pigeon Club, she travels to quite a few shows, she said, and won best in show with one of her pigeons, an Egyptian Swift, at the Virginia State Fair three years ago.
Although Marsh doesn't have any carrier pigeons, she does keep homing pigeons, which will find their way back to their roost, even from hundreds of miles away.
But they have to be trained, she said, by starting out at very short distances from the roost and increasing the distance.
Marsh also raises pheasants and has a Himalayan Monal and a Peacock pheasant.
Raising pigeons and other birds is a great hobby, she said.
"It's fun taking care of them, and I go to a lot of (pigeon show) events," she said.
Marsh said her birds are relatively easy to take care of and require many of the same vaccinations and treatments that most pets need.
"The babies get tame very quickly," she said. "And they don't bite (like some other pets). They're not dangerous."
Although a visitor may first notice all the pigeons in their fenced-in pen beside her house, an item on her front porch will also draw some interest.
A small yellow airplane, without the wings, is parked there like a grounded canary.
"I flew it all over the place," she said of her plane, one she built with the help of a mechanic friend. "It took five years to build it."
With a lifelong interest in birds, maybe it should not be surprising that she loves to fly.
But she did more than just fly. Her in-air antics may have rivaled the flying rolling pigeons.
"I did aerobatics," she said, referring to stunts pilots do at air shows. "I also raced."
Marsh said that was back in the 1960s and up until the mid-80s, when she chose a bit more sedate lifestyle.
It also would eventually lead to a move to Franklin County, the motivation for which was part a love of the area and part financial.
"I checked the region and Franklin County had the lowest (real estate) tax rate," she said, adding that she was also surprised at the difference in the cost of housing here compared to where she lived in New Jersey.
"I saw the price of this (her house and land) and I couldn't believe it," she said.
Regardless of the financial reasons, Marsh said this is her home now and she's not going anywhere.
"I love Franklin County," she said. |
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