July 19, 1913 
FOREST AND STREAM 
75 
Wild Pigeons. 
Rochester, N. Y., June 30.— Editor Forest 
and Stream: You probably will not pay much 
attention to the inclosed clippings (printed be¬ 
low), having been misled so many times, but I 
cannot think that the wild pigeon is extinct. 
This country is so big and there are so many 
wild retreats I am hopeful that this remarkable 
bird may be found existing and receive protection. 
I have vivid recollections of seeing when a 
boy thousands of wild pigeons circling about 
and alighting upon newly sowed wheat fields in 
the early fall. Being but a small lad at that 
time, I was not able to be so destructive to the 
pigeons as I would like to have been, and yet 
I frequently carried home with me enough wild 
pigeons to make a potpie. I had learned to 
string these pigeons on a forked stick by thrust¬ 
ing a sharp end through the soft flesh beneath 
the under beak of each bird, the same as fisher¬ 
men string fish they have caught in order to 
carry them more conveniently. 
One of the most beautiful sights I ever had 
of wild pigeons was seen while fishing along the 
Honeoye Creek, a branch of the Genesee River 
near Rochester, N. Y. Above the fishing hole 
were the ripples of the creek where the stones 
were plainly visible, the water dashing down be¬ 
tween stones and rocks. Suddenly a marvelous¬ 
ly large flock of pigeons circled over the spot 
and alighted in the stream upon these stones 
and rocks. Their object was to alleviate their 
thirst in the pure waters of the stream. 
One peculiarity of the wild pigeon, which 
I vividly recollect, is its habit of raising its 
head and nodding. This action of the bird 
seemed to occur when in hunting them, I ap¬ 
proached somewhat near. I have assumed that 
this motion of the head was an indication of 
the curiosity of the bird as to what was about 
to happen when I appeared closely at hand. 
Another habit of the wild pigeon was to 
alight upon the dead top of some old forest 
tree where it had a wide vision of the surround¬ 
ing country and of the approach of hunters. 
In early days in early spring wild pigeons 
in large flocks flying northward would strike 
the shore of Lake Ontario, and then would 
change their flight and sheer off to the east 
along the lake shore. Many hunters would sta¬ 
tion themselves near the lake in the early morn¬ 
ing hours and after a short season of shooting 
would carry home with them bushels or even 
barrels of these inoffensive but attractive birds. 
When I was a boy I was a bloodthirsty 
hunter, desiring to destroy the life of every 
wild creature inhabiting this part of the country. 
Of late years I have greater respect for life 
and thus take no pleasure in destroying life. 
The squirrel is more attractive to me dancing 
about the branches of the trees than when lying 
dead at my feet. C. A. Green. 
“M. M. Garland, surveyor of the port, sends 
the following self-explanatory letters to The 
Press, Rochester, N. Y.: 
June 25, I 9 ! 3 - 
‘ This morning at 5:30, about 300 wild 
pigeons passed over my house at Edgewood, fly¬ 
ing from the north to south; would probably 
pass through Allegheny county south of the 
Monongahela River, and on into Washington 
county, south or west of said river. As these 
birds are thought to be extinct, anyone seeing 
this flock should report the fact and place where 
seen to the newspapers at once." 
M. M. Garland. 
“Confirmation of the scientifically interest¬ 
ing announcement made by the Pittsburgh Press 
June 25 that Surveyor of the Port M. M. 
Garland had seen a flock of wild pigeons for 
years thought to be extinct, was received by The 
Press from another source. 
“Mrs. G. D. Craig, of Beechview, said to-day 
that yesterday morning she also saw a flock of 
wild pigeons flying in a southerly direction past 
her home. The birds, which looked to her to 
be silver feathered, were massed together in the 
shape of a diamond and were sufficiently near 
the ground to be clearly recognized as pigeons. 
“Mr. Garland was sitting on the porch in 
UPPER SPECIMEN, PASSENGER PIGEON. LOWER, MOURNING DOVE, FREQUENTLY 
MISTAKEN FOR PASSENGER PIGEON. 
Illustration from “The Passenger Pigeon,” by W. B. Mershon. 
