The Big Eaters

According to THE NEW YORKER, the ordinary pigeon (rock pigeon), which we sometimes call a feathered rat, is numerous in the United States but not native. The domesticated pigeon was brought here from Europe. There are many rock pigeons in the world, about 260,000,000. If you multiply correctly that figure by eight, you will get the number of native passenger pigeons that darkened the sky in the eastern half of North America until we ate them. When pigeons flew overhead, women ran indoors. They roamed in flocks of several million. Meanwhile the Maori of New Zealand dined on the flightless moa, Pacific Islanders munched about 1,000 species out of existence, and, by the way, what happened to the American mammoth? (Ans: it was eaten by paleo-Indians.)

We like squabs. To be honest, we did not eat the last passenger pigeon. By some oversight it died in a zoo on September 1, 1914. That was 100 years ago if you need a party theme.