What is "passenger pigeon"

passenger pigeon \passenger pigeon\ (Zo["o]l.), A once common wild pigeon of North America ( Ectopistes migratorius), now extinct. It was so called on account of its extensive migrations.

Note: The passenger pigeon presents a striking example of how dramatic a negative influence man can have on other species. The population of the passenger pigeon is estimated to have been at one time as high as five billion in North America, but over a period of about one hundred years large scale hunting for use as food and killing for ``sport'' reduced the numbers below that necessary to sustain existence of the species. At one time over 200,000 birds were shipped to the food markets in one day. The last wild pigeon is believed to have died in 1900, and the last bird in captivity died in 1914. It is a rare example of the date of a man-made extinction being recorded with certainty.

n. A bird of the extinct species ''Ectopistes migratorius''

n. gregarious North American migratory pigeon now extinct [syn: Ectopistes migratorius]

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. The morphologically similar mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) was long thought to be its closest relative, and the two were at times confused, but genetic analysis has shown that the genus Patagioenas is more closely related to it than the Zenaida doves.

The passenger pigeon was sexually dimorphic in size and coloration. The male was in length, mainly gray on the upperparts, lighter on the underparts, with iridescent bronze feathers on the neck, and black spots on the wings. The female was , and was duller and browner than the male overall. The juvenile was similar to the female, but without iridescence. It mainly inhabited the deciduous forests of eastern North America and was also recorded elsewhere, but bred primarily around the Great Lakes. The pigeon migrated in enormous flocks, constantly searching for food, shelter, and breeding grounds, and was once the most abundant bird in North America, numbering around 3 to 5 billion at the height of its population. It was not always as abundant, and the population size fluctuated rapidly over time. A very fast flyer, it could reach 100 km/h (62 mph). The bird fed mainly on mast, as well as fruits and invertebrates. It practiced communal roosting and communal breeding, and its extreme gregariousness may be linked with searching for food and predator satiation.

Passenger pigeons were hunted by Native Americans, but hunting intensified after the arrival of Europeans, particularly in the 19th century. Pigeon meat was commercialized as cheap food, resulting in hunting on a massive scale for many decades. There were several other factors contributing to the decline and subsequent extinction of the species, including shrinking of the large breeding populations necessary for preservation of the species and widespread deforestation which destroyed its habitat. A slow decline between about 1800 and 1870 was followed by a rapid decline between 1870 and 1890. The last confirmed wild bird is thought to have been shot in 1900. The last captive birds were divided in three groups around the turn of the 20th century, some of which were photographed alive. Martha, thought to be the last passenger pigeon, died on September 1, 1914, at the Cincinnati Zoo. Eradication of the species has been described as one of the greatest and most senseless extinctions induced by humans.