In tomorrow’s New York Times, I write about what pigeons taught Darwin about evolution, and what they can teach us over 150 years later. The spur for the story is a new paper in which scientists analyze the genomes of forty different pigeon breeds to understand the molecular secrets behind their remarkable diversity. My story is accompanied by some wonderful photos as well as a podcast in which I talk to my editor, David Corcoran, about the research.

Those who have ever been in earshot of me may find this story a bit puzzling. I have ranted many times about all the hoopla that bursts upon us every time the genome of yet another species is sequenced.