Passenger Pigeon
You dwelt in the vastness of the sky
with no fear of the hungry eagle
he couldn’t harm you in your millions.
You swarmed across the wild prairies
with no fear of the mighty bison
those couldn’t harm you in your millions.
You soared over the Rocky
Mountains
with no fear of the grey wolf packs
they couldn’t harm you in your millions.
You nested in the red
oak trees
with no fear of the long-legged bobcat,
she couldn’t harm you in your millions.
You flapped above people’s villages
with no fear of the families in their tepees,
these couldn’t harm you in your millions.
You flocked above the
steaming railroads
with no fear of the well-armed hunter
he destroyed you, all of your millions.
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The Passenger pigeon was once thought to be the most numerous bird on earth. The last one of their species died in Cincinnati Zoo in 1912. Humans had named her Martha.
