Feral pigeon or rock dove was originally kept to provide food and is the wild ancestor of domestic pigeons the world over.
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Feral pigeons come in all shades, some bluer, others blacker - some are pale grey with darker chequered markings, others an unusual shade of dull brick-red or cinnamon-brown, and still others can be or less white while others look exactly like wild rock doves.
The larger pigeons with a white flash on the collar is the wood pigeon.
Feral, or domestic, pigeons breed almost everywhere apart from upland areas and eat seeds and cereals.
The wood pigeon is the UK's largest pigeon, it is largely grey with a white neck patch and white wing patches, clearly visible in flight. Its cooing call is a familiar sound in woodlands as is the loud clatter of its wings when it flies away.
It breeds in the wider countryside it is found on farmland with hedges, trees and copses. In towns and cities it occupies parks and gardens
Most common call is 'coo coooo coo cu-cu'
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