Passenger Pigeon

Ectopistes migratorius

The passenger pigeon was a large pigeon with a long pointed tail. In Canada, the breeding areas of the passenger pigeon included eastern Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, southern Quebec, Anticosti Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. The number of passenger pigeons was greatly reduced by hunting, but this stopped when tens of thousands of the birds still remained, and suitable habitat was still available. The colonies may have become so small that predators were able to have a significant impact. The last individual died in captivity, in Cincinnati, Ohio, on September 1, 1914.