title: On the functional extinction of the Passenger Pigeon.
abstract: The Passenger Pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius) was a social breeder, and it has been suggested that the species experienced functional extinction, defined as a total reproductive failure, prior to its actual extinction in the early years of the 20th century. We applied a novel randomization test based on the relative times of the most recent egg- and skin-specimen sightings (i.e., recorded date of specimen collection) to test for functional extinction. For a total of 6 eggs and 27 skins, the observed significance level was 0.38, which indicated that the species did not become functionally extinct. Thus, proposals to reverse its rapid decline in the late 19th century could have been successful.
authors.affiliation: Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, School of Anthropology & Conservation, Marlowe Building, University of Kent, Canterbury, Kent, CT2 7NR, U.K.
authors.forename: David L
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-6788-2691
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.affiliation: Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Müggelseedamm 310, 12587, Berlin, Germany.|Institute for Multidisciplinary Research, University of Belgrade, KnezaViseslava 1, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Ivan
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-2185-297X
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Jarić
authors.affiliation: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, 02543, U.S.A.
authors.forename: Andrew R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Solow
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D010856:Columbidae; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D053476:Extinction, Biological; D012098:Reproduction
keywords: América del Norte; Ectopistes migratorius; North America; especímenes de museo; falla reproductiva; museum specimens; reproductive failure