It may be the age of mobile phones and online chatting, but old-fashioned means of communication are still in high demand.
The owner of a carrier-pigeon loft outside Moscow has been robbed of his precious pets. Some 200 birds were taken from his locked dovecote over the weekend.
The police say several criminals must have been involved. They could have used a big truck to hide their expensive prey.
The inconsolable owner estimates their market value to be 200,000 roubles (about $6,500).
Residents of the village where the dovecote is located suspect that the robbery was set up by an insider.
The specially-trained pigeons, though, are known to be able to find their way back home from thousands of miles away. So the owner still hopes they will return yet.