Joe the pigeon will live after it's discovered he's likely an Aussie

Source: The Hill | January 15, 2021 | Joseph Guzman

“Joe the Pigeon is highly likely to be Australian and does not present a biosecurity risk,” Australia’s Department of Agriculture said in a statement.

A pigeon that was thought to have travelled from the U.S. to Australia and was the target of Australian health authorities has escaped death after it was discovered he’s likely just a local bird. 

Joe the pigeon garnered international attention this week following reports the bird made the 8,000-mile trek across the Pacific Ocean into Australia. The Associated Press (AP) reported a Melbourne resident — appropriately named Kevin Celli-Bird — found the exhausted bird in his backyard on Dec. 26 drinking from a fountain. 

A tag on the bird’s leg later identified the animal as a racing pigeon that had left the state of Oregon during a race several months prior. 

The revelation that the bird could be American prompted Australian health authorities to say Joe needed to be captured and killed, in accordance with the country’s quarantine rules. Australia has strict quarantine rules when it comes to bringing live animals into the country in order to prevent the spread of dangerous diseases on the continent. 

But on Friday, it was reported the identifying leg band found on Joe was a fake. 

“Following an investigation, the department has concluded that Joe the Pigeon is highly likely to be Australian and does not present a biosecurity risk,” Australia’s Department of Agriculture said in a statement

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