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The Heath Hen
Early Signs of Trouble
During colonial times, Heath Hens (Rympanuchus cupida cupido) flourished among the heathland barrens of coastal North America from Maine to Virginia. Tasty and easy to kill, they were popular among early settlers, and their numbers quickly declined from over-hunting, habitat loss, and disease.
In 1791, the New York State legislature introduced a bill calling for the preservation of Heath Hens and other game, but it couldn't be enforced. After the birds disappeared from the mainland, a Heath Hen sanctuary was established on Martha's Vineyard in 1908. But when a fire destroyed the sanctuary's habitat in 1916, their numbers dwindled. The last one died in 1932. |