Band-tailed pigeons, Patagioenas fasciata, is one of the closest living relatives of the extinct passenger pigeon. In the California autumn they aggregate in large flocks and descend on areas with high density food patches, favoring wild berries, nuts and seeds. Acorns are a favorite, swallowed whole with a little gravel and grit they are softened in the crop and crushed up in the gizzard.
