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 […]
Tag: HBW 7 extinct species
Hawaiian Crake (Porzana sandwichensis)
The story A small species of rail once inhabited the main island of Hawaii and perhaps some other Hawaiian islands. A handful of specimens exist in the museums of the world but these have in themselves caused some controversy. Two of them are rather paler in colour than the rest, giving rise to the idea […]
Oahu Oo (Moho apicalis)
The story The main islands of Hawaii each had their own distinctive species of ‘O’o. All are closely related but their respective island isolations led to certain clear differences. The Oahu ‘O’o was distinguished chiefly by its strikingly marked black and white tail. Like its relative on Hawaii it sported yellow flank plumes and undertail-coverts. […]
Ula-ai-Hawane (Ciridops anna)
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 […]
Huia (Heteralocha acutirostris)
The story Perhaps the most celebrated of extinct passerines is the Huia (pronounced hoo-ee-ah). This strange, funereal-looking creature fascinated all of those who came into contact with it. First, it caught the imagination of the Maoris, who accorded it a special place in the natural order of things. Among the great treasures of ethnology are […]
Passenger Pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius)
The story The celebrated Passenger Pigeon has, perhaps, the most extraordinary story of any extinct bird. It may once have been the most numerous bird on Earth, and at the start of the nineteenth century vast flocks of this species blackened American skies. Yet during the course of 100 years the tremendous numbers dwindled until […]
Kona Grosbeak (Chloridops kona)
The story The Hawaiian honeycreepers form one of the most striking illustrations of adaptive radiation, but, unfortunately, so many of them are extinct that the example is now historical rather than living. At some point in prehistory an ancestral honeycreeper stock somehow arrived at the Hawaiian Islands and found a situation that was ripe for […]
Kauai Oo (Moho braccatus)
The story The fourth species ‘o’o clung to survival for much longer than the others. It was also the most divergent of the four. Whereas the other three are very similar looking creatures that show their close affinity quite clearly, the Kauai ‘O’o was comparatively aberrant. By no means so flashy in appearance, it was […]
Piopio (Turnagra capensis)
The story The Piopio, or New Zealand Thrush, may have been two species rather than one. Two quite distinct kinds existed, and they are usually regarded as races of the same species: nominate capensis of the South Island; and race tanagra of the North Island. There are good reasons for supposing that they should be […]
Greater Amakihi (Hemignathus sagittirostris)
The story The Greater Amakihi, a rather non-descript little honeycreeper coloured olive green, was discovered by the world of ornithology during 1892 when Rothschild’s collector Henry Palmer took four specimens. In December 1895 a few individuals were collected, and the species was located again during 1900. The following year it was found once more, since […]