# Ho Hrad to Bring Back Passenger Pigeons?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ho-hrad-to-bring-back-passenger-pigeons/727158>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 6, 2015, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ho-hrad-to-bring-back-passenger-pigeons/727158 "2015-08-06T14:35:36Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\
**Post date:** [August 6, 2015, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ho-hrad-to-bring-back-passenger-pigeons/727158/21 "2015-08-06T19:55:33Z")

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[quote=“astorian, post:20, topic:727158”]

This scene?

[/QUOTE]

You got it, Buster!

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**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\
**Post date:** [August 6, 2015, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ho-hrad-to-bring-back-passenger-pigeons/727158/22 "2015-08-06T20:01:22Z")

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> [@DrDeth](#):
>
> Whole forests were denuded of nuts, etc.
> 
> Honestly, the PP could not have survived into modern times.

And didn’t.

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**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\
**Post date:** [August 6, 2015, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ho-hrad-to-bring-back-passenger-pigeons/727158/23 "2015-08-06T20:59:46Z")

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> [@John\_Mace](#):
>
> His mom was Chinese. His dad is Serbian.

Thanks for the clarification, I had thought Chinese-Hungarian.

In any case, kudos to Dr. Ho Hrad. To paraphrase a line from _Fawlty Towers_, “I didn’t think the Chinese were as clever as that!”

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**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\
**Post date:** [August 6, 2015, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ho-hrad-to-bring-back-passenger-pigeons/727158/24 "2015-08-06T21:08:20Z")

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> [@DrDeth](#):
>
> No, you’re on the right track. I am sure Colibri will come by and give us the Straight Dope, but the Passenger Pigeon was one of a number of species that wont breed unless there are lots of them.

As you say, there are quite a few species that behave this way. That’s one reason zoo breeding programs often fail.

To use one example, at the San Diego Wildlife Preserve, they tried getting Sumatran rhinos to breed, but found the females were never receptive to the males’ advances. Apparently, in the wild, females were intended to live in matriarchal herds. All the females were supposed to go into heat at the same time, and then mate with the dominant local bachelor male at about the same time.

So, you can’t just introduce a good-looking male rhino to a female and expect them to mate. You need to establish a herd of females first, which is no small task.

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