Abstract
Announcement of a partial list of the speakers to appear at the 1981 Conference of the American Pigeon Fanciers' Council was made by Joseph W. Quinn, Chairman of the Council, and he emphasized that all five people in this initial release are ' 'new' ' to APFC audiences.
De Vere Bun, Director of the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History, will present the results of his study of the population dynamics of urban living feral pigeons. Burt, who is an active breeder of racing pigeons himself, has made some fascinating discoveries of how, for example, the pigeons adjusted their behavior and feeding cycles to the schedule of the city's street sweepers. If you thought that common pigeons were stupid animals, Bun has some news for you.
It isn't often that the Council can present an honest-to-TV celebrity on its program, but this year's gathering will be greeted and entertained by Dave McKelvy, who has appeared many times on The Johnny Carson Show. Those who have seen McKelvy on TV have witnessed some of his remarkable feats of bird training. Those who have not will just have to come and see. The title of his presentation was not decided by the time for closing this release; so we can not say if McKelvy will work with pigeons or some other kinds of birds-or if he plans to tell his audience how to train their own birds. While Quinn will have more
information on this later, it promises to be a real treat for all pigeon people.
Of celebrity stature-but probably less well known around the country-is Dr. Raymond Kray of North Hollywood, California, noted veterinary authority on avian medicine. If you have looked long and hard to find a vet who really has a depth of experience with birds-and have failed to find anyone in your area that meets your needs-bring your questions to St. Louis and bounce them off a real expert. The exact title of Dr. Kray's talk will be announced in a later release.
To round out the initial list of five newcomers to the APFC will be two speakers who have been closely associated with their panicular breeds for many years. George Kleinpell of Cleveland, Ohio, author of "The Turbit Handbook", noted student of short-faced pigeons, will give a judging demonstration of Turbits. Although Quinn's announcement didn't say, it may be presumed that Mr. Kleinpell will bring some of his own famous Turbits and do some genteel proselytizing, while he educates the newcomers in the finer points of his breed.
The other breed specialist will be James C. Isselhardt of Belleville, Illinois, highly successful breeder and well recognized judge of Racing Homers bred for showing. It should be pointed out that Isselhardt's birds are not Show
. Racers (formerly Showpen Racers), but actually a dual purpose breed, judged by feather texture (and "snap"), condition and the other qualities that are most likely to make a good flying pigeon. Strictly as a personal observer, this reporter must say he had not seen such clearly "blue" blue pigeons until he saw some of Isselhardr's. He will show and tell the finer details of judging this growing breed.
This twelfth annual conference of the APFC will be held on Friday evening, Saturday all-day, and Sunday Morning, July 24, 25, and 26th, 1981, at the Ramada Airport Inn, near the Lambert St. Louis International Airport. Advanced registration ($5.00 per person) should be made · by mail with the secretary-treasurer of the Council, Mrs. Thelma H. Snyder, 2421 Old Arch Rd., Norristown PA 19401. Those registered in advance will receive a complete program, showing all speakers and the schedule of their appearance.
Funher news of the 1981 conference will appear in the next issue of this magazine. Mark the dates, and plan now to attend. Hotel reservations (at special convention rates) may be made directly with the Ramada toll-free reservation center, 1-800-228-2828. The Saturday night banquet will once again be hosted by Ralston Purina Company. Banquet tickets are issued with your registration.