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Professionally, I’m a retired professor of accounting and former chair of the School of Accounting at the University of South Carolina’s Moore School of Business. My academic work explored how people make decisions in complex systems, especially when information is imperfect or overwhelming. I’ve published in a fair number of journals that few people read voluntarily, and I spent decades thinking about how technology shapes human behavior. These days, my time is divided between managing a small flock of chickens, herding goats, chatting on amateur radio (KO4LMP), and living just on the edge of the grid—literally and metaphorically. I’m a father to five daughters, a grandfather to 17, and a great-grandfather to three. Somewhere along the way, I realized that what I enjoy most is simply talking about the world we live in—and how to make sense of it.

🕊️AI Identifies Dovecotes–I Had No Idea

What are these two structures? I believe it is in Africa somewhere.

Note: The picture is copied from Book of the Month – John Wreford Photographer, a very interesting person who travels and takes photos where you have never been.

This is part of a series where I use AI to identify a variety of plants, animals, insects, rocks, diseases, et cetera, with the hopes of illustrating just how useful and interactive AI can be.

ChatGPT said:

These look very much like traditional pigeon towers (dovecotes), common in parts of North Africa and the Middle East, especially Egypt.

Why I think they’re pigeon towers

  • Conical shape is characteristic of many traditional dovecotes.
  • The hundreds of small round holes are entrance holes for pigeons.
  • The wooden pegs sticking out provide perches for birds before they enter.
  • They are built from mud brick or plastered earth, materials commonly used in hot, dry climates.

The pigeons served several purposes:

  • Fertilizer: Pigeon droppings were a valuable, nitrogen-rich fertilizer for crops.
  • Food: Squabs (young pigeons) were raised for meat.
  • Occasionally communication: Though these large towers were primarily for breeding rather than housing messenger pigeons.

The surrounding date palms also fit well with an oasis environment, which points toward places like:

  • Egypt (especially the Nile Valley or oases such as Fayoum or Siwa)
  • Parts of Tunisia
  • Morocco
  • Less commonly, similar structures can be found elsewhere across North Africa.

I’m about 90–95% confident these are pigeon towers rather than beehives or grain silos. Beehives generally have much smaller openings and lack the external perches.

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