11 foods that have gone extinct throughout history

In the past they were a constant presence at meals. But they are gone forever!

Whether it’s fauna or flora, there are foods that have simply become extinct, no longer exist. Have you heard of the assault pear, for example? The early 19th century writer UP Hendrick described it as a “high quality” fruit. And we’ll just have to take our word for it, after all, the assault pear disappeared shortly after these words were published.

And it wasn’t just her. Many fruits, vegetables and meats that will never be tasted again, either because they were consumed until their extinction, or for other historical factors, these are the foods of history that can no longer be eaten.

Ansault pear

First grown in Angers, France in 1863, the fruit was prized for its flavor. In the 1917 book The Pears of New York, UP Hendrick wrote that it “is substantial and creamy, better than any other grade of pear.”

Scattered trees and the rise of commercial agriculture contributed to the death of the fruit. Ansault pear trees were difficult to grow in large orchards, making them unattractive to commercial farmers, who opted for other pear varieties. It completely disappeared in the early 20th century.

passenger pigeon

Considered today “flying rats” due to their diseases and lice, some varieties of pigeons were once food. The homing pigeon, for example, was a vital food source for Seneca Native Americans, who called it jah’gowa, or “big loaf.” Apparently the bird was so tasty that it was unable to survive.

Hunting, combined with habitat and food loss, reduced their numbers from as many as 3 billion in the early 1800s to just one in 1900. That last pigeon, a captive pigeon named Martha in honor of the first Lady of the United States of America. She died at the Cincinnati, Ohio Zoo in 1914.

aurochs

You may have heard of the aurochs from the “Game of Thrones” series, but this creature does not belong to the same category as dragons. It is, in fact, a species of cattle domesticated 10,000 years ago. They were large and leaner than modern cows.

After suffering from disease and habitat loss, the species declined until the last aurochs died in a Polish forest in the 17th century. But there have been efforts to revive the species – or at least produce a new animal. that comes close. The meat of an aurochs-like cow raised in modern times is juicy and tender, with a “gamey” flavor.

Silfio

The ancient Greeks and Romans had many uses for this leek-flavored herb. Its stems were cooked and eaten as a vegetable, while its sap was dried and grated over various dishes as a condiment. It also had medicinal uses—it was apparently an effective form of birth control, and its heart-shaped seeds may be why we associate that shape with love today.

Silphium only grew in one area of ​​what is now Libya and could not be farmed. Demand for the precious herb quickly outstripped its natural supply. Pliny the Elder wrote that only one Silphium plant was discovered during his lifetime, and it was presented to the Roman emperor Nero between AD 54 and 68.

Dodo

The first Dutch sailors visited the Mauritius chain in 1598 and less than two centuries later the archipelago’s native dodo became extinct. Sailors depended on birds for sustenance on long sea voyages, but that’s not the main reason they disappeared. The habitat and the introduction of invasive species, such as rats and pigs, have ended up decimating them.

Although humans have eaten dodo meat, it was more for survival than taste. The last person to see a dodo, a British sailor named Benjamin Harry, described its meat as “very tough”. The Dutch word for dodo was “walghvodel” (“disgusting bird”).

Steller’s sea cow

German naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller identified Steller’s sea cow around the Commander Islands in the Bering Sea in 1741. Growing up to 9 meters in length, it was significantly larger than today’s live sea cows. Plus, it was quite tasty. The salt beef was likened to corned beef (beef pickled and boiled in vinegar over low heat), and the fat tasted like almond oil. Sailors reported drinking the melted blubber from cups.

Steller’s sea cows were a source of leather and lamp oil, as well as meat. The animal was hunted to extinction in 1768, less than 30 years after it was first described.

Mammoth

Woolly mammoth meat was an important component in the diet of our early ancestors. We ate so much of them that hunting may have contributed to their extinction around 2000 BC

Despite being extinct for thousands of years, several modern scientists and explorers claim to have tasted mammoth meat. Since mammoth specimens are often found perfectly preserved in the frigid Arctic, they could technically be thawed and eaten.

taliairon apple

Thomas Jefferson grew taliaferro apples in Monticello, Virginia, USA. In an 1814 letter to his niece, Jefferson said the tiny fruit made “unquestionably the best cider we ever knew, and more like wine than any drink I ever tasted that was not wine.”

Although the apple is believed to have been lost with the property’s original orchard, some horticulturists still hold out hopes for its survival.

big handle

Humans killed large ancas on a large scale to make duvets out of their feathers, leading to the extinction of the species in the mid-19th century, but they were first hunted for consumption.

Fossil evidence indicates that Neanderthals cooked flightless birds over open fires as early as 100,000 years ago. The Beothuk, people who now inhabit the Newfoundland region of Canada, used wide-hatted eggs to make pudding.

ancient bison

Before the American bison was nearly hunted to extinction in the 19th century, Bison Antiquus, or ancient bison, disappeared 10,000 years ago. Bones have been found that show evidence of butchering with tools. This suggests that Native Americans depended on ancient bison for food, just as their modern relatives do.

old Cornish cauliflower

Old Cornish cauliflower wasn’t known for its taste, but it had an edge over other varieties. The vegetable was resistant to a destructive plant virus called ringworm. In the 1940s European growers began to replace the old Cornish cauliflower with a more transport-resistant French variety and it became extinct in the 1950s in regions of Great Britain.

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Source: Terra

Rose

Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.