Cited by 187Genetic diversity and population structureAvian ecology and behaviorForensic and Genetic Research

Drastic population fluctuations explain the rapid extinction of the passenger pigeon

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Hung, Chih-Ming, Shaner, Pei-Jen L., Zink, Robert M., Liu, Wei-Chung, Chu, Te-Chin, Huang, Wen-San, Li, Shou-Hsien·2014·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Abstract

Significance: The number of passenger pigeons went from billions to zero in mere decades, in contrast to conventional wisdom that enormous population size provides a buffer against extinction. Our understanding of the passenger pigeon’s extinction, however, has been limited by a lack of knowledge of its long-term population history. Here we use both genomic and ecological analyses to show that the passenger pigeon was not always super abundant, but experienced dramatic population fluctuations, which could increase its vulnerability to human exploitation. Our study demonstrates that high-throughput–based ancient DNA analyses combined with ecological niche modeling can provide evidence allowing us to assess factors that led to the surprisingly rapid demise of the passenger pigeon.

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  • The most common wild bird in human history, the passenger pigeon, had a population of 3-5 billion in the 1800s.

    “it is thought that the most common wild bird in human history, the passenger pigeon, had a population of 3–5 billion in the 1800s [47].”

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  1. Audubon JJ (1833) Ornithological Biography (Adam Black Press, Philadelphia), Vol 1.

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Authors
Hung, C.-M., Shaner, P.-J. L., Zink, R. M., Liu, W.-C., Chu, T.-C., Huang, W.-S., & Li, S.-H.
Affiliations
  • National Taiwan Normal University (TW)
  • Department of Life Science and
  • University of Minnesota (US)
  • Institute of Statistical Science, Academia Sinica (TW)
  • National Chung Hsing University (TW)
Venue
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Published
2014-06-16
Volume
111
Issue
29
Pages
10636-10641
ISSN
  • 0027-8424 (ISSN-L)
  • 1091-6490
OpenAlex
W2136216597
Cited by
186
References
50
Citations by year
2026: 12 · 2025: 15 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 20 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 20 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 12 · 2017: 21 · 2016: 12 · 2015: 10 · 2014: 6
FWCI
10.73
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • NCHU Institutional Repository CRIS (submittedVersion)
Funders
National Science Council
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Genetic diversity and population structure
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Avian ecology and behavior
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Forensic and Genetic Research
Keywords
passenger pigeon, extinct species, population fluctuations, effective population size, human-driven extinction, human disturbance, species vulnerability
MeSH terms
Animals, Chromosome Mapping, Food Supply, Geography, Markov Chains, Columbidae, Population Density, Population Dynamics, United States, Genome, Quercus, Extinction, Biological

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