Homing pigeons and many other animals have exquisite geomagnetic sensing ability, and can accurately find the appropriate path and direction during the long migration route, which is the preferred model animal for the study of biological geomagnetic navigation. Although bio-geomagnetic navigation has made great progress in the past few decades, its biological mechanism is still unclear. In this paper, we review the recent advancements in the research of biological magnetoreception using homing pigeons. It focuses on the magnetic sensing mechanisms of the magnetoreceptor models based on nanoscale ferromagnetic particles and the radical pair model induced by light. It also proposes the key directions that future biological magnetoreception research should focus on. It is expected to provide more theoretical basis for the study of geomagnetic navigation using homing pigeons and help reveal the operating principles of the biological magnetic perception system.