Montana Field Guide

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Montana Field Guides

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- Kingdom - Animals - Animalia
  - Phylum - Vertebrates - Craniata
    - Class - Birds - Aves
      - Order - Pigeons / Doves - Columbiformes
        
        Family - Pigeon / Doves - Columbidae
        
        Species - Passenger Pigeon - Ectopistes migratorius

Passenger Pigeon - Ectopistes migratorius

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Native Species

Global Rank: GX
State Rank: SX

Agency Status
USFWS:
USFS:
BLM:
PIF:

External Links

General Description

Once an extremely abundant species, the Passenger Pigeon was hunted to extinction by the early 1900's. The last recorded live bird (Martha) died on September 1, 1914 at the Cincinnati Zoo.

Although there is no evidence that the Passenger Pigeon ever bred in Montana, the species did occur in the state with observations as far west as Chief Mountain Lake (Waterton) and the Hellgate River (Clark Fork). Lewis and Clark on their westward journey to the Pacific first recorded the Passenger Pigeon in Montana on July 12, 1805 at "Canoe Camp" on the Missouri River, just below the Smith River (Skaar, unpublished).

For a comprehensive review of the conservation status, habitat use, and ecology of this and other Montana bird species, please see Marks et al. 2016, Birds of Montana.

Species Range

Montana Range Range Descriptions

Historical

Western Hemisphere Range

Observations in Montana Natural Heritage Program Database

Number of Observations: 9

(Click on the following maps and charts to see full sized version) Map Help and Descriptions

Relative Density

Recency

SUMMER (Feb 16 - Dec 14)

Direct Evidence of Breeding

Indirect Evidence of Breeding

No Evidence of Breeding

WINTER (Dec 15 - Feb 15)

Regularly Observed

Not Regularly Observed

(Observations spanning multiple months or years are excluded from time charts)

Food Habits

Fed on service berries (Cooper 1869 in Hand 1969).

References

Literature Cited AboveLegend: View Online Publication
- Hand, R.L. 1969. A distributional checklist of the birds of western Montana. Unpublished. Available at Mansfield Library, University of Montana, Missoula.
- Marks, J.S., P. Hendricks, and D. Casey. 2016. Birds of Montana. Arrington, VA. Buteo Books. 659 pages.
Additional ReferencesLegend: View Online Publication
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- American Ornithologists’ Union [AOU]. 1998. Check-list of North American birds, 7th edition. American Ornithologists’ Union, Washington, D.C. 829 p.
- Ehrlich, P., D. Dobkin, and D. Wheye. 1988. The birder’s handbook: a field guide to the natural history of North American birds. Simon and Schuster Inc. New York. 785 pp.
- Hays, R., R.L. Eng, and C.V. Davis (preparers). 1984. A list of Montana birds. Helena, MT: MT Dept. of Fish, Wildlife & Parks.
- Joslin, Gayle, and Heidi B. Youmans. 1999. Effects of recreation on Rocky Mountain wildlife: a review for Montana. [Montana]: Montana Chapter of the Wildlife Society.
- Lenard, S., J. Carlson, J. Ellis, C. Jones, and C. Tilly. 2003. P. D. Skaar's Montana bird distribution, 6th edition. Montana Audubon, Helena, MT. 144 pp.
- Montana Bird Distribution Committee. 2012. P.D. Skaar's Montana bird distribution. 7th Edition. Montana Audubon, Helena, Montana. 208 pp. + foldout map.
- MT Fish, Wildlife & Parks. No date. Blackfoot-Clearwater Wildlife Management Area checklist.
- Sibley, D. 2014. The Sibley guide to birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York, NY. 598 pp.
- Skaar, P.D. 1969. Birds of the Bozeman latilong: a compilation of data concerning the birds which occur between 45 and 46 N. latitude and 111 and 112 W. longitude, with current lists for Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, impinging Montana counties and Yellowstone National Park. Bozeman, MT. 132 p.
- Taylor, D.M. and C.H. Trost. 1987. The status of historically rare of unrecorded birds in Idaho. Unpublished manuscript. 68 p.
- Walcheck, K.C. 1999. The Lewis and Clark Expedition: Montana's First Bird Inventory Through the Eyes of Lewis and Clark. Lewis and Clark Interpretive Association. 48 pp.
- Waldt, R. 1995. The Pine Butte Swamp Preserve bird list. Choteau, MT: The Nature Conservancy. Updated August 1995.
- Watts, C.R. and L.C. Eichhorn. 1981. Changes in the birds of central Montana. Proceedings of the Montana Academy of Sciences 40:31-40.
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Citation for data on this website:
Passenger Pigeon — Ectopistes migratorius. Montana Field Guide. Montana Natural Heritage Program and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved on April 20, 2024, from https://FieldGuide.mt.gov/speciesDetail.aspx?elcode=ABNPB05010