The story Although it was once well known to the natives of Hawaii, by the time that Europeans began their ornithological exploration of the island, this species has virtually disappeared. The striking red, black and silver Ula-ai-Hawane is known from just five specimens, two in New York (one of which is either an immature or […]
Bonin Grosbeak (Chaunoproctus ferreorostris)
The story A large, spectacular grosbeak-like bird once lived on the Bonin Islands to the south of Japan. It is known from nothing more than two series of skins that were collected during the 1820’s, skins that are in themselves a little puzzling. Some are rather larger than others, giving rise to the supposition that […]
Reunion Starling (Fregilupus varius)
The story This large and rather beautiful species, also known as the Bourbon Crested Starling, was characterized by an extraordinary lace-like crest. It was an inhabitant of the Mascarene island of Reunion (formerly called Bourbon). It was known locally by the name huppe, which is also the French name for the Hoopoe (Upupa epops). It […]
Robust White-eye (Zosterops strenuus)
The story So impressed was he by the comparatively large size of this species, for a white-eye, that the famous nineteenth century ornithologist and writer John Gould felt inclined to give this bird the common name of “Robust Zosterops”, and this same sensation is perhaps recalled somewhat in the scientific name that he gave it. […]
Bonin Woodpigeon (Columba versicolor)
The story The avifaunas of several islands to the south of Japan have been badly depleted, and one of these island groups, the Bonins (Ogasawara), has lost several distinct forms. One of these was the Bonin Pigeon, a large, dark bird that was discovered in 1827 during the exploratory voyage of HMS Blossom. It seems […]
Ascension Rail (Atlantisea elpenor)
The story The evidence for the former existence of a small rail on Ascension Island is of two kinds. First, bones from a rail have been found on the island and, second, there exists a seventeenth century written account of just such a creature. This account was written by the much travelled Englishman Peter Mundy, […]
Chatham Rail (Gallirallus modestus)
The story This species seems to provide a fairly typical example of the way in which rails develop on isolated islands. It is assumed that this is another form that has evolved from an ancestral stock resembling the Buff-banded Rail, but in this case the evolution was rather more advanced than in others. Following the […]
Tahiti Rail (Gallirallus pacificus)
The story The Tahitian Red-billed or Tahiti Rail is known only from a painting that survives today in the collection of the Natural History Museum, London. This painting was produced by Georg Forster, one of the naturalists who sailed with Captain James Cook on his second epic voyage around the world during the 1770’s. Forster’s […]
Leguats Rail (Aphanapteryx leguati)
The story The Huguenot refugee Francois Leguat discovered a relative of the Mauritian Red Rail during his two-year sojourn on the island of Rodrigues: Our Wood-hens are fat all the year round and of a most delicate taste. Their colour is always of a bright grey, and there is very little difference in the plumage […]
Pink-headed Duck (Rhodonessa caryophyllacea)
The story There is a certain amount of controversy over whether or not the Pink-headed Duck of north-eastern India still survives. Probably it does not, but there are those who believe it might and every few years or so an expedition goes in search of it. Thus far none of these expeditions has proved successful. […]