"I had this school friend who kept a few pigeons and a couple of years ago his father had some of the Modena breed. He said they weren't any good for anything and he was going to eat them so, of course, I said 'Oh, don't do that', bought them and took them home," the 16-year-old from Nuriootpa said.

"And that's how it all began."

Needless to say, James didn't eat them, but he developed a great fascination for pigeons in general and Modenas in particular.

"When we lived at Truro, I had a homing pigeon named Pidgee and I still have him. Then I bought a few homers at the Gawler market, but I'm really more interested in showing my pigeons, and homers are not suitable for shows, but the Modenas are great show birds."

The hobby has grown to the extent that James has about 70 Modenas.

"I might expand and keep a few more as I breed them, but that will depend on available cage space," he said.

"Luckily, my dad Graham is very supportive and helps me build cages and travel around to some shows with my best pigeons.

"No, I don't give them names, but I do know each of my birds individually," he said.

So, how does someone begin to get involved with the world of pigeon breeding and shows?

"Well, there are quite a few people in South Australia who breed Modenas," James said, "but it isn't always easy to find them.

"I was lucky because I have a friend, Michael Linke, who is also interested, and there are a number of people who have helped me along the way."

* Extract from a full Our People report in Stock Journal, May 7 issue.