“Joe” the pigeon, named after the US’s president-elect Joe Biden, may not be euthanized after all. The pigeon had made headlines after it was believed to have journeyed across the Pacific Ocean from the US to Australia.
It had been deemed a “biosecurity risk” for the native bird population by Australia’s department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment. As a result, the bird was set to be euthanised.
However, the new revelations have saved the bird’s life as it was found that it was not from the US after all. Earlier it was believed that the bird was the same bird that went missing from pigeon race in the Oregon state of the US. A blue band on its leg had linked it to the missing bird.
Later The American Racing Pigeon Union threw that link into doubt after it said in a Facebook post, “What a relief to know that Joe the Pigeon found in Australia does not wear a genuine AU band. The true band is in the U.S. worn by a Blue Bar, not the pigeon featured in news photos about Joe. The pigeon found in Australia sports a counterfeit band and need not be destroyed per biosecurity measures, because his actual home is in Australia. It is a disappointment that false information spreads so quickly, but we are appreciative that the real pigeon did not stray from the U.S.”
The Australian department also concluded that the bird was wearing a counterfeit band and that no action needed to be taken.
The department said in a statement, “following an investigation, the department has concluded that Joe the Pigeon is highly likely to be Australian and does not present a biosecurity risk.”