ORNITHOLOGY 



223 



Some Notes on the Passenger Pigeon 

 and Its Recent Reported Occurrence 

 in Minnesota. 



What was generally believed to be the 

 last survivor of that great army of pas- 

 senger pigeons which swarmed in almost 

 unbelievable numbers over our continent 

 in the days of Audubon, died in the Zoolo- 

 gical Gardens at Cincinnati. Ohio, on the 

 first day of September. IQ[4. This bird — 

 a female — was born in captivity, and was 

 twent\-nine vears old. Since that time 



that the\' had ])en'>hed in storms or had 

 been wiped out by disease, though as the 

 seasons went by and no birds reappeared 

 the former theory soon died out, and from 

 the best obtainable reports it appears now 

 conclusive that destruction by man has 

 been the ultimate factor in causing the 

 disappearance of the wild pigeon. 



That there may yet remain a few of 

 these birds alive s^ems not altogether im- 

 possible, and a report coming from the 

 Rev. Dr. Francis L. Palmer,, of Stillwater, 

 Minnesota, that he believes he has seen a 



PASSENGER PIGEONS AT ONE TIME IN CAPTIVITY IN HYDE PARK, MASSACHUSETTS. 



large rewards have been otlered for the 

 finding of a nest of a wild pigeon, and 

 occasionally reports of one or more of 

 these birds having been seen would be 

 brought to the attention of ornithologists, 

 only to find that the observer had been 

 mistaken and that the birds in question 

 were mourning doves, band-tailed pigeons 

 or some other species resembling the true 

 "wild"' or "passenger" pigeon. 



Notwithstanding the relentless persecu- 

 tion and slaughter of these birds through- 

 out their range, their disappearance took 

 place so suddenly and the annihilation of 

 the species was apparently so complete 

 that it has called forth considerable specu- 

 lation as to the direct cause of this catas- 

 trophe. Manv believed that it was but a 

 temporary disappearance and that for 

 some unknown reason the diminishing 

 flocks had migrated to new fields ; others. 



passenger in the vicinity seems to be a 

 well-authenticated record of its recent 

 appearance, wdiich, he states, occurred on 

 the thirty-first of May, 191 5. Noting this 

 occurrence mentioned in "Bird-Lore" I 

 wrote Dr. Palmer for further particulars 

 and previous records in his locality. 



In the instance mentioned. Dr. Palmer, 

 who has studied the birds of Minnesota 

 for fifteen years, was accompanied by his 

 daughter and two other observers and had 

 a g-ood opportunity of observing the bird 

 and noting its call. \\'hile skepticism 

 always pushes to the front in such cases, 

 reasonable testimony must be accepted 

 and there appears very little chance of the 

 parties being mistaken in this instance. 

 That the mourning dove is common in the 

 vicinity and was well known to the ob- 

 servers ; that the band-tailed [n'geon has 

 never been known to occur in that part 



