Carrier pigeon A carrier pigeon or messenger pigeon is a homing pigeon ( specifically a domesticated rock pigeon , " Columba livia " ) that is used to carry messages . Using pigeons to carry messages is generally called " pigeon post " . Most homing or racing type varieties are used to carry messages . There is no specific breed actually called " carrier pigeon " . Carrier pigeons that are the basic Racing Homer were used to carry messages in World War I and World War II . Thirty - two pigeons were presented with the Dickin Medal . History . Historically , pigeons carried messages only one way , to their home . They had to be transported manually before another flight . However , by placing their food at one location and their home at another location , pigeons have been trained to fly back and forth up to twice a day reliably , covering round - trip flights up to 160 km ( 100 mi ) . Their reliability has lent itself to occasional use on mail routes , such as the Great Barrier Pigeongram Service established between Auckland , New Zealand and Great Barrier Island in November 1897 . With training , pigeons can carry up to 75 g ( 2 . 5 oz ) on their backs . The German apothecary Julius Neubronner used carrier pigeons to deliver urgent medication . In 1977 a similar carrier pigeon service was set up for the transport of laboratory specimens between two English hospitals . Every morning a basket with pigeons was taken from Plymouth General Hospital to Devonport Hospital . The birds then delivered unbreakable vials back to Plymouth as needed . The 30 carrier pigeons became unnecessary in 1983 because of the closure of one of the hospitals . In the 1980s a similar system existed between two French hospitals located in Granville and Avranche . Wartime use . Before the advent of radio , carrier pigeons were frequently used on the battlefield as a means for a mobile force to communicate with a stationary headquarters . In the 6th century BC , Cyrus , king of Persia , used carrier pigeons to communicate with various parts of his empire . During the 19th - century Franco - Prussian War , besieged Parisians used carrier pigeons to transmit messages outside the city ; in response , the besieging German Army employed hawks to hunt the pigeons . During the First and Second World War s , carrier pigeons were used to transport messages back to their home coop behind the lines . When they landed , wires in the coop would sound a bell or buzzer and a soldier of the Signal Corps would know a message had arrived . He would go to the coop , remove the message from the canister , and send it to its destination by telegraph , field phone , or personal messenger . A carrier pigeon ' s job was dangerous . Nearby enemy soldiers often tried to shoot down pigeons , knowing that released birds were carrying important messages . Some of these pigeons became quite famous among the infantrymen they worked for . One pigeon , named " The Mocker " , flew 52 missions before he was wounded . Another , named " Cher Ami " , was injured in the last week of World War I . Though she lost her foot and one eye , her message got through , saving a large group of surrounded American infantrymen .