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The passenger pigeon or wild pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius) is an extinct species of pigeon that was endemic to North America. Its common name is derived from the French word passager, meaning "passing by", due to the migratory habits of the species. The scientific name also refers to its migratory characteristics.
Passenger pigeon, migratory bird hunted to extinction by humans. Billions of these birds inhabited eastern North America in the early 1800s; migrating flocks darkened the skies for days. As settlers pressed westward, passenger pigeons were slaughtered by the millions.
"The passenger pigeon was once the most abundant bird in the world and suddenly it disappeared totally from the Earth." Could hunting alone have brought down the passenger pigeon?
About September 1, 1914, the last known passenger pigeon, a female named Martha, died at the Cincinnati Zoo. She was roughly 29 years old, with a palsy that made her tremble. Not once in her life had she laid a fertile egg. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the passenger pigeon’s extinction.
The passenger pigeon was a colonial and gregarious bird and needed large numbers for optimum breeding conditions. It was not possible to reestablish the species with a few captive birds. The small captive flocks weakened and died.
Scientific Name: Ectopistes migratorius. Population: Extinct. Trend: Extinct. Habitat: Deciduous forests of eastern North America. Passenger Pigeons, Thomas Gilbert Pearson. September 1, 2014 marks 100 years since the last known Passenger Pigeon, known as Martha, died at the Cincinnati Zoo.
Passenger Pigeons Used to Flock by the Billions. At the start of the 19th century, the passenger pigeon was the most common bird in North America, and possibly the entire world, with a population estimated at five billion or so individuals.
Billions of these birds once flew over North America, but the last known passenger pigeon died in 1914. To try to figure out what happened, scientists analyzed DNA from the toes of birds in...
A hundred years later, the passenger pigeon remains iconic and is inspiring extravagant new technological feats. One team of scientists is even trying to bring the species back from extinction...
Legendary among ornithologists and laypeople alike as a symbol of staggering abundance on the one hand and of human greed and indifference on the other, the Passenger Pigeon is arguably North America's best known extinct species.