22 
 
 
-Iwo young for the tame pigeon and the mourning dove, leaves the firm 
.conviction that the Passenger Pigeon laid two eggs. 
 
                  WAS THERE A SECOND NESTING? 
     It is frequently stated in the literature, chiefly if not solely on
the 
.authority of trappers, that the Passenger Pigeon nested two and three 
times in a season. I can find no reliable evidence whatsoever that there

was a second nesting in Wisconsin in 1871. 
     The first specific reference to nests is in the Friendship Adams 
County Press for April 15. The incubation period was precisely 14 
days. The young were fed for 14 to I6 days by the parents and then 
-abandoned. At this stage the squabs were excessively fat and three 
to four additional days were required before they could fly well. It 
is important to keep these figures in mind as they fit remarkably the 
data for the great "roost." The parents were tied to the eggs and

ýsquabs for a period of 30 days. If the eggs were laid about April
15, 
there should have been a great flight of adults about May 15. We find 
this in the La Crosse Democrat for May 15: "Wild pigeons for the 
last few days have been flying over town in such myriads as to fre- 
.quently darken the sun like a cloud. Their flight has been mostly from 
the northeast to the southwest, which leads us to believe that their 
nesting operations have been fooled with to such a degree as to cause 
them to desert their eggs, young and all. Hunters ought to have sense 
enough to go slow a little and give the old birds time to bring forth 
their young, or, they will desert this section of the country entirely, 
but we don't suppose the farmers would mourn much." 
     On May 13 the pigeon hunters at Friendship reported that the 
,old birds were repairing their nests and the indications were that they

would stay in the section until a second brood was raised. On the same 
date the Kilbourn Mirror states: "Next week will be time for squab 
hunting. Get ready your poles to knock them from the trees. They 
are better and fatter than the old birds." 
     As a rule the squabs were not gathered until they were about to 
 be abandoned by the parents. The Plover paper of May 13 states 
 that during the week several loads of young pigeons captured below 
 ,Grand Rapids passed through the village. This might indicate that