"Probably the most famous carrier pigeon is Cher Ami, one of 600 birds flown by the U.S. Army's Signal Corps in France during World War I. In 1919, Cher Ami was shot through the breast on what became his last mission, but still managed to return to his loft before dying. Although the capsule holding the message had been shattered, it was dangling from Cher Ami's leg, and it enabled the rescue of 194 soldiers just hours later. He was given the French Croix de Guerre medal. Cher Ami is on display at the Smithsonian Institution's Museum of American History in Washington, D.C."