Authorization to Release Section 37 Funds for a Heritage Plaque to Recognize the Extinct Passenger Pigeon and its Connection to Mimico - by Councillor Amber Morley, seconded by Councillor Chris Moise

According to accounts by Elizabeth Simcoe, Samuel de Champlain, and J. J. Audubon, massive flocks of passenger pigeons could darken the sky. The birds may have been the most abundant bird on earth with an estimated population of five billion at their peak. However, despite their abundance, they fell victim to overhunting and habitat destruction, leading to their eventual extinction. In 1914, Martha, the last passenger pigeon, died in captivity at the Cincinnati Zoological Garden. The passenger pigeons were last recorded in Toronto in 1890 and in Canada in 1902. However, people can still see a taxidermied bird at the Royal Ontario Museum. The Royal Ontario Museum has 150 Passenger Pigeon specimens, the largest collection in the world.