Bricon.....

Pigeon Trackingpigeon blog

Reported by Reuters News Agency [London] on February 1 that a flock of pigeons fitted with mobile phone backpacks is to be used to monitor air pollution over the skies of San Jose, California. The idea is the brainchild of researcher Beatriz da Costa, of the University of California at Irvine, and two of her students.

Each of 20 birds will be released in August 2006 and carry a GPS satellite tracking receiver, air pollution sensors and a basic mobile ' phone, capable of detecting carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide.

Text messages on air quality will be beamed back in real time to a special pigeon 'blog', a journal accessible on the Internet. Miniature cameras slung around the pigeons' necks will also post aerial pictures. The data they send back will be displayed on the blog in the form of an interactive map.

Very interesting Ian

Pigeons helped win the war

Now helping with big brother

will be fascinating seeing some of the pics (specially if harry hawk is about), to what they do

yes i agree lightening mc, it would be good to see whats happening as they flying.......

Spot on with your comments

Lets hope with evidence of hawk attacks this may help our pigeons in the future

even the conservationists are coming out now don and admitting there are too many of them and they are out of control.......

Must say had cracked 2 by Ronny Bigwood and in this film he films a hawk attacking a pigeon

must be strong birds to carry all that

shoot them

ian wrote:

Pigeon Trackingpigeon blog

Reported by Reuters News Agency [London] on February 1 that a flock of pigeons fitted with mobile phone backpacks is to be used to monitor air pollution over the skies of San Jose, California. The idea is the brainchild of researcher Beatriz da Costa, of the University of California at Irvine, and two of her students.

Each of 20 birds will be released in August 2006 and carry a GPS satellite tracking receiver, air pollution sensors and a basic mobile ' phone, capable of detecting carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide.

Text messages on air quality will be beamed back in real time to a special pigeon 'blog', a journal accessible on the Internet. Miniature cameras slung around the pigeons' necks will also post aerial pictures. The data they send back will be displayed on the blog in the form of an interactive map.

Ian do you have any more info on this, as for some time now aswell as loseing birds to BOP some people also think that the amount of mobile phone mast's have had a effect on pigeons ability to home.
I just wondered what the outcome of this experiment was

Pigeons monitor air pollution




Twenty pigeons equipped with mobile phone backpacks are to be used to monitor air pollution in California.

The birds' backpacks will contain a basic mobile phone, a GPS satellite tracking receiver and air pollution sensors.

Automatic text messages on air quality will be transmitted in real time to a special pigeon online journal.

Miniature cameras slung around the birds' necks will also send aerial pictures to produce interactive pollution maps online.

Researcher Beatriz da Costa, of the University of California at Irvine, and two of her students came up with the unusual idea.

The team have built a prototype of the pigeons' equipment and plan to fit all the components onto a single board small enough to be carried in a backpack by the birds.

"We are combining an air pollution sensor with a home-made cellphone," da Costa told New Scientist.

The flock of 20 techno-pigeons are set to be released into the skies of San Jose on 5 August at the Inter-Society for Electronic Arts' annual meeting.

cant really find much more about it if i do ill put it on

yes do that

Thanks Ian

The unikon system is good also

The Bricon and the Unikon are both good systems but the only reason people say the Bricon is because that is the main one used in Belguim

THE MAJORITY PEOPLE I KNOW PREFER THE UNIKON

BUT AS I HAVE ALREADY SAID IT IS EVERYONE TO THERE OWN

yes your right don i was just stating a point not saying its a better system as i know nothing about the bricon

Nothing men't by it mate that is the only reason why some fanciers use it