Science through the lens

Our changing online gallery presents photos from research in the field, illustrations about little-known aspects of science, as well as videos – always linked to short stories about sustainability or sustainable development. Now featuring:

Colombiculture in Cappadocia: Awakening a fairy tale

Colombiculture is a nearly forgotten agrarian practice worldwide. Cappadocia, Turkey, provides a notable example. This traditional agricultural activity involves breeding pigeons in “fairy chimneys” to use their manure as fertilizer, particularly for tending vineyards. Eda Elif Tibet’s research highlights that reconnecting with human–environmental relationships and traditional farming practices is essential for indigenizing and decolonizing identity among Cappadocia’s remaining cave-dwelling communities.

An exhibition by Eda Elif Tibet, filmmaker and scientist at the Wyss Academy and the Institute of Geography, University of Bern (read more about her research in the interview further below)

Ahmet Türke, a boutique hotel owner and vineyard keeper, feeding pigeons during winter in Uçhisar Pigeon Valley.
Ahmet Türke, a boutique hotel owner and vineyard keeper, feeding pigeons during winter in Uçhisar Pigeon Valley.
The moon-like volcanic landscape covered in snow at Göreme National Park, Cappadocia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The moon-like volcanic landscape covered in snow at Göreme National Park, Cappadocia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Transformation from cave dwellings to a Disneyland-like attraction

Located in the midst of the Turkish Anatolian highlands, the surreal landscape of Cappadocia was created 10 million years ago as the result of the activity of three ancient volcanoes, making it a rich cultural and biodiverse area. The cone structures produced by lava and erosion throughout the landscape – known as “fairy chimneys” – were eventually used by the earliest settlers as cave dwellings.

In the 11th century, the Seljuks arrived in Cappadocia. They used the fairy chimneys as dovecotes and the pigeon manure to grow grapes to trade as well as vegetables for a self-sufficient life.

Since the 1980s, the conversion of cave houses and fairy chimneys into tourist accommodations has diminished practices like pigeon breeding, dovecote carving, dovecote rock art, and other subsistence-related activities. These cultural and ecological transformations have replaced a sky once filled with pigeons with one filled with hot air balloons, creating and fantasizing a Disneyland-like commodified narrative of Cappadocian identity.

Ahmet and his son Mehmet are collecting pigeon manure from the fairy chimneys.
Ahmet and his son Mehmet are collecting pigeon manure from the fairy chimneys.
Ahmet fertilizes volcanic ash soil with pigeon manure using the dusting and aeration technique.
Ahmet fertilizes volcanic ash soil with pigeon manure using the dusting and aeration technique.
Zehra Gozer, an elderly cave dweller, prepares tomato purée (locally known as salca) for winter in Göreme village.
Zehra Gozer, an elderly cave dweller, prepares tomato purée (locally known as salca) for winter in Göreme village.
After the harvest, the grapes are dried (Uçhisar village).
After the harvest, the grapes are dried (Uçhisar village).
Zarife produces pectin/molasses after the grape harvest.
Zarife produces pectin/molasses after the grape harvest. In a poem she writes: “The blackest of grapes, the richest of soil, the fiercest of fire, the sweetest of molasses."

Regenerative agriculture and its products in Cappadocia

In addition to grapes vegetables are also grown using regenerative agriculture. The basis for all this is manure from pigeons.

From the grape molasses, for instance, numerous traditional sweets are made. One of the specialities is “molasses snow dessert”. It’s a combination of grape molasses (pekmez) and snow. It is typically prepared by pouring molasses over freshly fallen snow, creating a sweet and chewy treat with a soft texture. The dessert is enjoyed as a winter treat and is especially popular in rural areas.

“Molasses snow dessert”
Molasses snow dessert
wild teas and herbs
Local communities also produce wild teas and herbs.
Pigeon breeder showcasing his pigeon’s feathers and balance.
Pigeon breeder showcasing his pigeon’s feathers and balance.


AWAKENING A FAIRY TALE 

Watch also the documentary film in epidodes by Eda Elif Tibet broadcast on Habitat TV:
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

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INTERVIEW WITH EDA ELIF TIBET

Eda Elif Tibet in Cappadocia
Eda Elif Tibet in Cappadocia

“If marketed and supported correctly, colombiculture can become a sustainable alternative to mass tourism”

Since 2010, you’ve been researching the cave houses and traditional colombiculture in Cappadocia. What’s your motivation?

My motivation is both personal, as I have ancestral connection, and academic. Cappadocia’s landscape is not just a geological wonder, but also a deeply storied place shaped by generations of human–nature interactions. As a researcher and filmmaker, I was drawn to how people have adapted to and shaped this landscape through traditional ecological knowledge, particularly through colombiculture – the breeding of pigeons in fairy chimneys to fertilize vineyards.

Historically, the cave dwellings and dovecotes were integral to sustaining livelihoods. The human–pigeon relationship played a crucial role in maintaining both the households, the fairy chimneys, and the landscape itself. However, this relationship has been overshadowed by market forces, tourism, and policy changes. Even local communities have begun to overlook the importance of these practices. The only way to restore Cappadocia’s fairy chimneys and caves is to revitalize the sentient ecology that once existed – between people, pigeons, and the land.

You argue that reconciling the separation between humans and landscapes is essential to decolonizing the identity among Cappadocia’s cave-dwelling communities. What do you mean by that?

Over time, many local people have been displaced due to mass tourism, urbanization, and policies that restrict traditional livelihoods. This has led to a rupture between the communities and the landscape they once actively shaped. Decolonizing identity, in this context, means reclaiming and revitalizing these ancestral relationships with the land – understanding that the cave dwellers were never separate from the fairy chimneys or the pigeons, but part of an interconnected ecological system.

Tim Ingold’s concept of “dwelling perspective” (1993) helps explain this. It’s not just about living in a place; it’s about co-existing with it in a way that maintains balance. When these traditional practices are lost, people lose part of their identity and agency. The goal is to restore this connection – not just as a nostalgic revival, but also as a living, evolving practice that ensures sustainability for future generations.

Your approach is visual storytelling, combining social anthropology with arts. What impact do you expect this to have?

Visual storytelling is powerful because it transcends academic discourse and speaks directly to people’s emotions and senses. Through ethnographic filmmaking, photography, and multimodal storytelling, I aim to make the sentient ecology of Cappadocia visible and tangible again.

By documenting the lived experiences of cave dwellers and pigeon keepers, my work serves as both an archive and a call to action. Using design and storytelling techniques inspired by the region’s cultural and ecological heritage, this research helps bridge gaps – between past and present, between tradition and innovation. Ideally, this will inspire both local communities and policymakers to recognize the value of these practices and support their continuation.

In Cappadocia, you funded the “Fairy Dust Project” which aims to bring the pigeons back into the dovecotes and fairy chimneys as well as market the traditional products of colombiculture. In your films, most of the practitioners are elders. Does colombiculture really have a future in a landscape where tourism seems to dominate everything?

Yes, but it requires adaptation. Colombiculture, as a practice, is at risk because younger generations are not continuing it in the same way. However, this does not mean it has no future. The “Fairy Dust Project” is about integrating traditional knowledge into contemporary realities – whether through ecotourism, organic farming, artisanal products, or arts and design for further branding and engagement.

If marketed and supported correctly, colombiculture can become a sustainable alternative to mass tourism. Instead of viewing pigeons and dovecotes as relics of the past, they can be part of Cappadocia’s future – revitalizing both cultural heritage and ecological balance. The challenge is to make this transition appealing to younger generations while ensuring that it remains an ethical and community-driven endeavour.

From my experiences at the Wyss Academy for Nature and my time at the Media Lab of the Geography Institute at the University of Bern, I integrate a multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary approach to building a coalition for change. This initiative not only promotes ecological products made with pigeon guano but also incorporates artistic designs – such as these clay earrings crafted by Iranian artist Nadia Naeemaee – which are helping to revive the “fairy tale”. Half of our earnings will go towards restoring the dovecotes and bringing the pigeons back to Cappadocia.

Interview: Gaby Allheilig