Extinct birds: 100 unique species. Quiz

Answer: Auk, Great

The great auk (Alca impennis) was a very common bird that roamed the North Atlantic over a thousand years ago. Bluish-black with a white underbelly, the auk was hunted relentlessly for its meat, feathers, and value as collector items. In 1830, the island of Geirfuglasker was destroyed by a combined volcanic eruption and earthquake. The majority of auk were killed and the remaining few settled on Eldey.

The Auckland Island merganser (Mergus australis) was a freshwater species similar to a duck and was restricted to the Auckland Islands, located off the southern tip of New Zealand. Discovered in 1840, it eventually became extinct due mainly to predation by pigs, rats, cats and dogs. The last known specimens were shot and collected on January 9, 1902 by the Earl of Ranfurly and are currently on display in the Natural History Museum in London, England. In 1966, a very similar bird was captured and photographed near a dump site on Adams Island, one of the Aucklands group.

The Atitlan grebe (Podilymbus gigas) was a small flightless shorebird native to Lake Atitlan, Guatemala, South America and was first described in 1929 by American ornithologist Ludlow Griscom. A combination of earthquake in 1976, political unrest in 1982, human encroachment, and predation reduced the population to 30 specimens by 1983. By 1986, despite the heroic efforts by (one) Anne LaBastille to save it, the Atitlan grebe was no more. In general, grebes are small, freshwater diving birds that occupy lakes, streams, and rivers.

The Amsterdam Island duck (Anas marecula) once roamed Amsterdam Island, French Southern Territories and was mentioned by a certain Mr. Barrow in his notes on a visit to nearby St. Paul Island in 1793. Both islands are found in the southern Indian Ocean, far from other land masses.

Answer: Bonin grosbeak

The Bonin grosbeak (Chaunoproctus ferreirostris) was a type of finch indigenous to Peel Island, part of the Bonin Islands group. The bird disappeared by 1854 although there were unconfirmed sightings up to 1890.
Also indigenous to Peel Island was Kittlitz's thrush (Zoothera terrestris), named after F. H. von Kittlitz, who found and collected the only four known specimens when visiting the island in June, 1829. Von Kittlitz had the distinction of being the only naturalist to see the grosbeak alive.

The black mamo (Drepanis funerea) was a small passerine (perching) bird similar to a swallow and possessing a delicate hooked beak. Also known as Perkin's mamo, it was indigenous to Molokai, Hawaii and first described by R. C. L. Perkins on June 18, 1893. The bird was last collected when three specimens were shot by a certain Alanson Bryan in June, 1907 at Moanui. Ironically, its demise was due mainly to habitat destruction by cattle and predation by rats.

The Banggai crow (Corvus unicolor) is known only from two specimens collected in 1884 on an unknown island, possibly near Indonesia. Sightings in 1981 and 1991 remain unverified.

The Bulo Burti boubou (Laniarius liberatus) was seen only once, in central Somalia, Africa. Caught near Buulobarde (Bulo Burti) on the Shebelle River in 1988, the specimen was released back into the wild in 1990.

Answer: Carolina parakeet

The Carolina parakeet (Conuropsis carolinensis) had the distinction of being the only parrot species indigenous to the USA. It was a slender bright green parakeet with a yellow throat and reddish-orange face. Their numbers, once plentiful during the 19th century, dwindled drastically due to habitat loss, hunting, and disease and the last wild specimen was killed in 1904 in Florida, USA. The last known captive pair of Carolina parakeets were "Incas", a male, and "Lady Jane", a female, who arrived at the zoo about 1885. Lady Jane died in the summer of 1917. Incas's health declined soon after. The last reported sighting was of a small flock also in Florida in 1920 and the Carolina parakeet was declared extinct in 1939.
Although most parrot species prefer or exist south of the equator, the Carolina parakeet was one of the rare few that found the northern hemisphere more appealing. This makes its loss all the more tragic.

The Caatinga woodpecker (Celeus obrieni) is known only from a single specimen taken in 1926 in the caatinga (white thorny ecosystem) forest of Western Piaui in Brazil, South America. The forest has since been destroyed.

The Chatham Islands rail (Rallus modestus) was first discovered on Mangere Island, east of New Zealand's South Island, in 1871. Twenty six specimens were collected before the bird became extinct, probably due to predation and habitat burning. By 1900, the rail was nowhere to be found. Rails are small birds commonly associated with wetlands (marshes, reedbeds, lakes, etc).
Also disappearing about the same time was the native fernbird (see Q.6).

The Canary Island oystercatcher (Haematopus meadewaldoi) was a type of wading bird once common on the Canary Islands, a collection of seven volcanic islands in the North Atlantic off the west coast of Morocco. It was last collected in 1913 and reported extinct in the 1940's. There were four unconfirmed sightings between 1968 and 1981.

Answer: Dodo

The dodo (Raphus cucullatus) was a greyish bird found only in Mauritius. It had no major predators until the Portuguese explorers landed about 1505. The birds, flightless and curious, were defenceless against hunting and became extinct likely before 1690. In 1755, the last complete stuffed specimen was ordered burned by the director of the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, England due to extensive decay. The foot and head were salvaged by an alert curator and are in the University's Natural History Museum. As an extinct species, the dodo did not attract much attention until the publication of Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland" in 1865. Recently confirmed as closely related to the pigeon, the dodo has become the unofficial symbol of extinction. At the time of their discovery, they were referred to as "walgvogel" by the Dutch, meaning "disgusting bird". Occasionally, rumors circulate that dodos still exist in Mauritius. However, subsequent attempts to find them have met with failure. Over ninety percent of the original forests and flora familiar to the dodo have vanished, making the dodo's existence highly unlikely.

(For a more detailed biography on the Dodo, please refer to my quiz # 246734: "The Extinct Dodo of Mauritius")

Mauritius is part of the Mascarene Islands chain located east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. Two other notable Mascarene bird habitats are Reunion and Rodrigues islands (see Q.18).

The Dusky seaside sparrow (Ammodramus maritimus nigrescens) was once very abundant on Merritt Island in Florida, USA. Decisions by the Kennedy Space Centre authorities regarding the local marsh ultimately doomed the little bird. It was flooded in 1963 to combat mosquitoes. Later, a highway was built through the marsh to connect the Centre with Disney World. The sparrow's habitat was compromised. Attempts to revive the species in 1979 and 1980 proved futile and the last sparrow, "Orange Band", died in captivity on June 16, 1987.

Delalande's coucal (Coua delalandei) was an early cuckoo that lived exclusively in the rain forest on Ile de Sainte-Marie, an island off the northeast coast of Madagascar. A white-breasted bird with bright blue plumage, it was doomed by deforestation. Thirteen specimens exist, the last one collected in 1834 by Mon. Bernier. Madagascar is located off the east coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean.

Darwin's large ground finch (Geospiza magnirostris) was represented by seven specimens comprising four females and three males. They were collected by Charles Darwin (1809-1882) in 1835 in the Galapagos, a group of islands situated west of Ecuador, South America. Although a reportedly similar bird was found in 1957 on Floreana, none identical to the original specimen was ever recovered. Darwin never did reveal the location of his original find.

Answer: Eskimo curlew

The Eskimo "Northern" curlew (Numenius borealis) numbered in the millions during the 19th century. Although there were reported sightings as recently as 1990, the last irrefutable evidence of the curlew in North America was photographs taken on Galveston Island in Texas, USA in 1962.

The Peruvian scale-throated earthcreeper (Upucerthia dumetaria peruana) was a small passerine known only from two birds taken in the early 1950's in Puno, Peru in South America.

The Ebon purple-capped fruit dove (Ptilinopus porphyraceus marshallianus) is known from a solitary specimen collected in 1859 on Ebon, Marshall Islands lying southwest of Hawaii in the North Pacific.

Brace's emerald (Chlorostilbon bracei) was a type of hummingbird and known only from the specimen shot and killed by bird collector Lewis Brace on July 13, 1877 in the Bahamas, northeast of Cuba. The bird is currently located at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C., USA. In 1987, palaeontologists excavated fossil bones of the hummingbird in the caves of New Providence, proving that the emerald inhabited the Bahamas for thousands of years until its gradual decline in the 1800's.

Answer: Flycatcher, Guam

The Guam flycatcher (Myiagra freycineti) was a small passerine bird doomed to extinction with the introduction of the snake. The population crashed in 1970 and the bird became extinct in 1983. Guam is located east of the Phillipines in the North Pacific. The current snake population has been estimated anywhere from 1/2 to 2 million on the tiny 500 sq. km. island.

The Chatham Island fernbird (Bowdleria punctata rufescens) was common in the Chatham Islands, New Zealand. It was accidentally discovered in 1868 by (one) Charles Traill who threw a stone at the bird and killed it. The fernbird was last recorded in 1900 when a specimen was shot and collected on Mangere Island for Sir Walter Rothschild.

The red-moustached "Marquesas" fruit dove (Ptilinopus mercierii) was once endemic to the forests of the Marquesas, French Polynesia in the South Pacific. The only specimen ever collected was in 1836 by botanist named Mon. Mercier during the exploration of the ship "Venus". He found it in the Maboua valley on the Marquesas island of Nukuhiva and the bird specimen is still located in Paris, France. The fruit dove was last recorded in 1849.
On nearby Hiva Oa, there existed a distinct race of the fruit dove up till the 1920's.

Rueck's blue flycatcher (Cyornis ruckii) is known only from two specimens collected in Indochina.

Answer: Guadalupe caracara

The Guadalupe caracara (Polyborus lutosus) was a medium-sized bird of prey once endemic to Isla Guadalupe, a small island south-west of Baja California, USA. Falcon-like in stature, it was first described by Edward Palmer in 1876 and further descriptions were given by Walter Bryant in 1887. Hated by local goatherders because of the birds' occasional attacks on livestock, it was driven to extinction through a combination of poisoning and hunting. The last confirmed sighting of the caracara was on December 1, 1900 when field collector Rollo Beck watched a flock of 11 birds fly over him and 9 were shot down. There was one unconfirmed sighting in 1903.
Also found on the island at one time was the Guadalupe storm petrel (Oceanodroma macrodactyla). Walter Bryant first saw and collected this bird in 1885. It most likely became extinct around 1911, the advent of World War One. There is currently a similar but smaller species called Leach's storm petrel to be found on Guadalupe.

The glaucus macaw (Anodorhynchus glaucus) was a type of parrot indigenous to South America. Its population dropped drastically during the 19th century due mainly to habitat loss. There were only two reliable recordings of the bird in the 20th century and the last captive specimen died at the London Zoo (London, England) in 1912.

The Grand Cayman thrush (Turdus ravidus) is known only from 21 specimens collected in the Grand Cayman Islands, south of Cuba. First described by C. B. Cory in 1886, the last individual was caught in 1916 and the last sighting was in 1938.

The Colombian grebe (Podiceps andinus) lived around the wetlands of Bogota, Colombia in South America. Their population started to dwindle in the 1950's due to pollution, hunting, and habitat loss and the last reported sighting was in 1977.

Answer: Heath hen

The heath hen (Tympanichus cupido) was a wild chicken that roamed the eastern USA. Expanding human populations put pressure on the bird's existence and by the 1870's the only remaining specimens occupied Martha's Vineyard (Massachusetts, USA). In 1907, there were only 50 birds. A sanctuary was established in 1908 and the species flourished, reaching 2000 birds by 1915. A combination of fire in 1916, harsh winter in 1917, predatory goshawks, and turkey-introduced diseases reduced the population to 13 (mostly male) specimens by 1927. The last living heath hen was seen on March 11, 1932. It died the same year.

The huia (Heteralocha acutirostris) was a small blue-black bird prized by the Maori for the beautiful tail feathers that decorated it like a fan. One particular incident created an increased feather demand. While on a state visit to New Zealand, the Duke and Duchess of York were welcomed by the Maori. One of the guides removed a huia feather from her hair and placed it in the Duke's bowler hat. This simple act sealed the huia's fate. Once endemic to the North Island of New Zealand, it became extinct around the turn of the century and was last reliably recorded in 1907 by field naturalist W. W. Smith on the outskirts of Wellington. The huia may have endured up till the end of the 1920's but eventually died out. New Zealand museums were able to preserve 120 skins before the bird's disappearance.

The hooded seedeater (Sporophila melanops) was a type of finch known only from a single specimen collected in Brazil, South America in 1823.

The Hawaiian thrush (Myadestes obscurus) was the most common forest bird on the island up to 1891. By 1970, there were only about 330 birds remaining and that was further reduced to about 20 in 1981. The last possible sighting of the thrush was in 1989.
Another bird indigenous to the island was the Hawaiian rail (Porzana sandwichensis), a small dark-brown bird. First collected during the 18th century, the last specimens were taken during the 1860's and a final sighting occurred in 1884. Two specimens exist, one in Leiden, Holland and the other in New York City, USA.

Answer: Ivory-billed woodpecker

If the sightings are confirmed, the ivory-billed woodpecker (Campephilus principalis) will be considered a member of a "Lazarus" species. It is (or was) the second largest species of woodpecker in the world, after the imperial woodpecker. The term "Lazarus" applies to any flora or fauna thought extinct but rediscovered later. Popular examples include the coelacanth and the South Island (NZ) takahe.
The woodpecker was at one time very common across the south-east United States during the 1800's. The population crashed during the 1930's and James T. Tanner was commissioned to locate any specimens and make recommendations on how to save the bird. It was determined that the best hope for the woodpecker's recovery lay in an 80,000 acre parcel of Louisiana forest owned by the Singer Sewing Machine Co. called the "Singer Tract". U.S. president F.D.R. was approached by the National Audubon Society in the hopes of stopping the unchecked logging in the area, but without success. Logging continued and the woodpecker was sighted for the final time in the Tract in 1944. The very last sighting of the bird in the USA was in 1952 in the Apalachicola Swamp in Florida.
Presently, some scientists are making the claim that what was actually sighted was the more common and similar-looking pileated woodpecker (Drynocopus pileatus).

The imperial woodpecker (Campephilus imperialis) has not been reliably sighted since 1958 and is assumed to be extinct. Once found in Mexico, Central America, it was the largest of the woodpecker species. The last collected specimen was one shot in Durango (Mexico) in 1956. Although there were unconfirmed sightings up to 2005, no photographs or recordings of a live woodpecker exist.

The imperial parrot (Amazona imperialis) is native to Dominica, Lesser Antilles. Due to habitat loss, natural disasters, and the pet trade, the bird is currently on the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) Endangered List.

The Iwo Jima crake (Porzana cinerea brevipes) was native to the Ogasawara Islands south of Japan. Its extinction probably occurred early in the 20th century. Crakes are similar to rails in habitat selection.

Answer: Jamaican golden swallow

The golden swallow (Tachycineta euchrysea) might still be alive but its last known roost site was destroyed in 1987.

The pauraque (Siphonorhis americanus) was a true nocturnal bird that was often heard but rarely seen. Only a few specimens were saved and the last one collected was in 1869. They are divided between the American Museum of Natural History in New York, USA, and the Natural History Museum in London, England.

The red macaw (Ara gossei) is known only from the written record by the naturalist P. H. Gosse of "a certain Mr. Odell shooting a specimen in 1765 in the mountains of Hanover parish, Lucea in Jamaica". The skin was stuffed and described by a Dr. Robinson but unfortunately cannot be traced.
The only West Indian red macaw of which there is irrefutable evidence is the Cuban Red macaw (Ara tricolor). It was a bright-red bird with blue wings and a brown tail. The last recorded bird was shot in 1864 at La Vega near the Zapata swamp in Cuba. There are specimens owned by museums around the world.

The Jamaican petrel (Pterodroma carribea) was known to Jamaicans as the Blue Mountain duck. Also called a diablotin, it was last collected in 1879 and subsequent searches between 1996 and 2000 proved fruitless.

All four species are presumed extinct. The deep mountainous terrain of the island makes verification difficult at the present time. Jamaica is located to the south of Cuba in the Caribbean Sea.

There exists a painting of an unknown Jamaican parrot created by naturalist George Edwards in July, 1764. The bird, bright red with a white underbelly, is perched on a low branch. An inscription at the bottom of the painting reads: "A very uncommon parrot from Jamaica. Drawn from Nature the size of life". Nothing more is known of this mysterious bird.

This question is dedicated to the land of my birth.

Answer: Kakapo parrot

The Kakapo parrot (Strigops habroptilus) is native to New Zealand and was at one time on the brink of extinction. It has the distinction of being both the heaviest and only flightless species of parrot in the world. In 2001, the remaining birds, about 50, were let loose on Chalky and Codfish islands, two very small outcrops off the southern tip of New Zealand's South Island. Predators were eradicated so that the islands could be reclaimed as sanctuaries for endangered species. Currently (2006), there are 86 live specimens, all given names by the New Zealand Wildlife Service.

The Kosrae "Kusaie" starling (Aplonis corvina) was a dark crow-like bird once common in the mountain forests of Kosrae, Micronesia, located east of the Phillipines in the Pacific Ocean. It is known only from five specimens collected in December, 1828 by F. H. von Kittlitz. Three specimens are housed in St. Petersburg, Russia and two are in Leiden, Holland. The species likely died out long before 1880.

The Kioea (Chaetoptila angustipluma) a medium-size honeyeater, was restricted to Hawaii. All the known specimens were collected between 1840 and 1859, the last by a local shopkeeper and amateur naturalist named (Mr.) J. Mills. Only four have survived. They have been divided among museums in Honolulu, Hawaii, Washington, USA, New York, USA, and Cambridge, England.

The King Island emu (Dromaius novaeholladiae ater) was endemic to King Island, off the southern tip of Melbourne, Australia. It was discovered in 1802 and three specimens were shipped back to France in 1804. Due mainly to habitat burning and hunting, the emu became extinct in the wild long before the last captive bird died in 1822. Only one skin was saved and is on display in the Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris, France.
Closely related was the Kangaroo Island emu (D.n. baudinianus), discovered in 1802 on Kangaroo Island off the southwest tip of Adelaide. Extinction occurred around 1827 and no specimens exist.

Answer: Lord Howe gerygone

The Lord Howe gerygone (Gerygone insularis) was an abundant forest bird that inhabited Lord Howe island, a small islet in the Tasman Sea east of Australia. The 1918 wreck of the SS Makambo off Ned's Beach introduced the black rat to the island. A subsequent search in 1936 failed to turn up any trace of the gerygone. Unfortunately, no detailed records of the bird exist.
Also indigenous to the island, the Lord Howe swamphen (Porphyrio albus) was a mostly white-coloured species that died out in the early 1800's.
Point of interest: In early 2006, Ned's Beach was voted Australia's cleanest among 300 national beaches that competed for the honour.

The Labrador duck (Camptorhynchus labradorius) was common in the USA and Canada in the 1800's. First described in 1789, the duck's demise was due mainly to habitat loss and inability to change feeding habits. The last confirmed specimen was collected off Long Island, USA in 1875.

The laughing owl (Sceloglaux albifacies) was a light-brown bird native to the North and South Islands of New Zealand. The name was derived from the sound made by two owls hailing each other. There are only two instances recorded of the owl on the North Island. Reported to be relatively tame and harmless, one was shot in 1855 and another was collected in 1866 but neither can be traced today. The owl died out on the North Island by 1890 and most specimens and descriptions relate to the South Island type. The last record of the bird on the South Island was the finding of a dead specimen at Bluecliffs, South Canterbury, by a Mrs. Airini Woodhouse in July, 1914.

The Laysan honeycreeper (Himatiore sanguinea) was indigenous to Laysan Island, located west-northwest of Hawaii. Years of overgrazing on the tiny atoll by introduced rabbits destroyed the vegetation that offered protection from the elements. In 1923, the last three birds were observed by members of the US Biological Society shortly before a severe sandstorm swept over the island on April 24, killing the honeycreeper, millerbird (Acrocephalus familiaris), and rail (Porzana palmeri).
Note: The rail was first seen by Russian sailors in 1828. Although all the rails on Laysan Island died in the sandstorm, by sheer luck some of the birds had been relocated to Eastern (not Easter) Island in the Midway atoll in 1891 and 1913. The birds flourished until 1943, when a US navy landing craft drifted ashore with a cargo of rats. The rail became extinct in 1945.

Answer: Mysterious starling

The mysterious starling (Aplonis mavornata) has an interesting history. For many years, a small dark bird skin of unknown origin lay ignored in the Natural History Museum (then the British Museum) until 1888. Between 1888 and 1986, almost 100 years, various attempts were made by naturalists to identify and categorize the bird without any success. In December 1986, bird specialist Storrs L. Olson of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, USA wrote an article for Notornis, the New Zealand ornithological society journal. It concerned an old manuscript found in the British Museum describing the travels of naturalist Andrew Bloxam on a ship commanded by George Anson, Lord Byron. On September 28, 1824, the ship sailed from London, England carrying the bodies of the King and Queen of Hawaii, both of whom died of the measles while visiting London. After discharging its official duty, the ship left Hawaii in July, 1825 and stopped off at Cook Islands where Bloxam shot the starling "hopping about (on a) tree", along with other specimens. A subsequent search in 1973 failed to turn up any further evidence of the bird. The prevailing theory is that the bird species fell victim to rodent predation. The Cook Islands are part of French Polynesia, northeast of New Zealand in the South Pacific.

The Mauritius blue pigeon (Alectroenas nitidissima) was first described in 1602. The last specimen was collected in 1826, possibly becoming extinct in the 1830's. The only remnants are three skins and a number of paintings and descriptions.
The Mauritius red hen (Aphanapteryx bonasia) was a large reddish-brown rail endemic to the island but unable to fly. Discovered by explorers during the 1500's, they proved to be a popular part of the sailors' diet and the bird's numbers diminished rapidly for the next 100 years. During his visit to Mauritius in the 1690's, Francois Leguat noted that the red hen had become very rare. It likely died out by 1699.

The Miyako Island "Ryukyu" kingfisher (Halcyon miyakoensis) is known only from a single specimen collected in 1887. Miyako-jima Island lies east of Taiwan. The presence of the brown tree snake in the Pacific Islands continues to be an ongoing concern for naturalists and conservationists.

The Madagascar pochard (Aythya innotata) was a species of diving duck that was last seen and captured in 1991 at Lake Alaotra, Madagascar. The captured male was kept at the Antananarivo Botanical Gardens until its death one year later.
Another bird found on the lake, the Alaotra grebe (Tachybaptus rufolavatus), was last sighted in 1988.

Answer: Norfolk Island kaka

The Norfolk Island kaka (Nestor meridionalis productus) was a type of parrot that inhabited Norfolk and Phillip Islands, located east of Australia and north of New Zealand. It had a yellowish-orange underbelly with grey plumage. Reportedly tame, it was hunted by convicts and early settlers for food. It became extinct early in the 19th century and seven specimens are known to exist. The last record of a captive kaka was in London in 1851.

The NZ little bittern (Ixobrychus novaezelandiae) was a small wading heron common to South Island, New Zealand. It disappeared before 1900 and is known only from bones found on the North Island.

Newton's parakeet (Psittacula exsul), a blue-grey bird with a red beak, was named after the world-renowned ornithologist Alfred Newton (1829-1907). It was a small parrot common to the forests of Rodrigues, one of the Mascarene island chain. First described in 1691, there are only two complete specimens in existence, one male and one female. The last sighting occurred on August 14, 1875 when the male was shot and collected. Both specimens are currently in the University Museum of Zoology, Cambridge, in England.

The North Island (and South Island) species, close relatives of purple swamphens, were once endemic to New Zealand. The North Island takahe (Notornis mantelli) was known only from skeletal remains, while it was thought that the South Island takahe (Notornis hochstetteri) died out with the collection of four specimens prior to 1898:

1849 - The first specimen was caught by sealers at Duck Cove, Resolution Island and exhibited by Dr. Gideon Mandell at the Zoological Society meeting in London, England.
1851 - The second specimen was caught by a Maori on Secretary Island in Thompson Sound and is in the Dominion Museum in Wellington, New Zealand.
December 1879 - The third specimen was caught by a rabbiter's dogs, preserved by the rabbiter, and eventually sent to London, England for sale. Purchased by Oscar Loebel and given to the Dresden Museum, it disappeared during the Second World War.
August 7, 1898 - The fourth specimen was collected by Donald Ross at Middle Fiord near Lake Te Anau when his dog ran into the bush and emerged with a bird in its mouth. The bird died shortly after and the completely preserved specimen was purchased by the New Zealand Government and placed in the Dunedin Museum.

Fifty years passed without any more sightings.

On November 20, 1948, at an elevation of 2200 feet above Lake Te Anau in the South island's Murchison mountains, the takahe was re-discovered by Dr. Geoffrey B. Orbell of Invercargill and announced to the entire world.

Answer: O'o, Kauai

The Kauai o'o (Moho braccatus) was indigenous to Kauai, Hawaii. Once plentiful, the species was eventually confined to a wilderness preserve by the 1970's. The last photograph of the bird was probably in July 1975 by H. Douglas Pratt, who along with colleagues Sheila Conant and Robert Shallenberger, spent a week in the Alaka'i Swamp, fabled as home to many bird species. By 1981, only a single pair of the Kauai o'o remained. After Hurricane Iwa hit the island in 1982, the female was nowhere to be found. The Kauai o'o male was seen for the last time in 1985.

The Oahu o'o (Moho apicalis) was restricted to Oahu, Hawaii. It is known from only seven specimens, the last three collected by a certain Herr Deppe in the Honolulu hills in 1837.

The Hawaii o'o (Moho nobilis) was prized by Hawaiian royalty for its feathers and found only on the mainland. It was last collected in 1898 when hunters discovered an overlooked population of the rare bird in the Wailuku area and shot over a thousand specimens. The Hawaii o'o was seen for the final time on the Mauna Loa slopes in 1934.

The Molokai "Bishop's" o'o (Moho bishopi) was first collected in the 1880's. It was last recorded in 1904 on the Wailau Trail by George C. Munro. Despite numerous reports as to its survival up to 1915, no trace of the bird was found despite searches taken between 1915 and 1949. A possible specimen was observed on a mountain slope in 1981.

Answer: Passenger pigeon

The passenger pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius) was considered the most common bird in North America during the 19th century. They were often reported as flying in flocks that would "darken the sky". There were no more reported sightings of the pigeon in the wild after 1900. The last wild specimen was caught on September 9, 1899. The plight of the passenger pigeon gave credence to the theory that there might be certain minimum threshold numbers for bird species sustainability. If the number dipped below the threshold, extinction will follow unless there were proactive attempts to revive the population.

The Mascarene parrot (Mascarinus mascarinus) of Reunion Island became extinct around 1800. It was a grey bird with a black facial hood and red beak. Captive birds shipped to France survived, the last one dying at the Zoological Gardens in Munich, Germany in 1834. Two specimens of the parrot are currently preserved. One is in the Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris, France and the other at the Naturhistorisches Museum in Vienna, Austria. It is not known whether the parrot inhabited the other Mascarene islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues.

The pink-headed duck (Rhodonessa caryophyllacia) once ranged over Bangladesh, Burma, Nepal and India but human encroachment on the bird's habitat sealed its fate. Up till 1929, specimens of the duck were kept at Foxwarren Park, Surrey, in England but the captive birds did not attempt to multiply and the last one died around 1939. The last recorded sighting of the duck in the wild was 1936.

The paradise parrot (Psephotus pulcherrimus) was first recorded on the Darling Downs, Australia by John Gilbert in 1844. The preferred habitats were river valleys and savannah woodlands. The last record of a specimen in captivity was in 1894 and the last confirmed sighting was on September 14, 1927. A sighting of five individuals in 1990 remains unconfirmed.

Answer: Quail, Manipur bush

The Manipur bush quail (Perdicula manipurensis) of India was last seen around 1932. Choudhury reportedly saw the quail in Assam but was unable to photograph it.

The New Zealand quail (Coturnix novae-zelandiae) was first observed in 1769 by explorer James Cook and English naturalist Sir Joseph Banks. Habitat burning, rodent predation, and avian disease combined to drive the bird to extinction. The last recorded sighting of the quail on the North Island was in December 1869 and the last specimens were collected at Blueskin Bay, South Island in 1867. The final sighting on the South Island was in 1875.

The Himalayan mountain quail (Ophrysia superciliosa) was indigenous to India. The first published (1846) description was of the specimen owned by the Earl of Derby and housed at Knowsley Hall, Liverpool, England. Specimens of the bird were collected between 1865 and 1868 at an altitude of about 5000 feet in the foothills of the western Himalayas. Not seen since 1876, less than ten specimens are preserved, half of which are in the Natural History Museum, London, England.

The Snow mountain quail (Anurophasis monorthonyx) can only be found in the mountainous areas of Irian Jaya, Indonesia. Due to its limited locale, the bird has been placed on the IUCN Red List as "near threatened".

Answer: Raoul Island scrubfowl

The Raoul Island scrubfowl (Megapodius ?) was once an abundant bird on the island. Part of the Kermadec Islands chain and located northeast of New Zealand, Raoul Island has a long history of volcanic activity and is uninhabited except for a meteorological station.

The Raiatea parakeet (Cyanoramphus ulietanus), also called the Society parakeet, was a yellowish-brown bird known only from two specimens collected by James Cook's team on his third expedition to the South Pacific during the period from 1773-1777. Cook landed on Raiatea, French Polynesia on November 3, 1777 and left on December 7. Notable among the French Polynesian Islands are Raiatea, Tahiti, and Bora Bora. One specimen skin is housed in the Natural History Museum in London, England and the other in the Naturhistorisches Museum in Vienna, Austria. In his 1981 book "The Doomsday Book of Animals", David Day made the claim that the bird still existed but it remained unconfirmed.

The Reunion Island solitaire (Raphus solitarius) is known only from paintings and descriptions. A certain Mon. Bary de Saint Vincent visited the island and was unable to locate any traces of the bird. Also known as the "white dodo", it may have been confused with the white Reunion sacred ibis which became extinct in the 1700's.
Rodrigues Island had its own version of "dodo" called the Rodrigues solitaire (or solitary). Apart from a small collection of bones, the only proof of the solitaire's existence were by the French Huguenot refugee Francois Leguat (1708) and by an anonymous document of the island penned in 1730. Leguat had the distinction of being the only person to see and sketch the living bird. The last confirmed report on the solitaire was by French astronomer Abbe Gui Pingre in 1763. On his visit to Rodrigues in 1761 to observe "the transit of Venus", Pingre was told that the bird was found only in remote corners of the island. The solitaire became extinct in the late 1700's.

It is likely that the Mauritius dodo, Rodrigues solitaire and (possibly) Reunion dodo all trace a common ancestry to a species of ancient fruit-eating pigeon of mainland Africa or Asia.

The New Caledonian rail (Gallirallus lafresnayanus) was a flightless rail that occupied New Caledonia, an island east of Australia in the South Pacific. Known only from seventeen specimens collected between 1860 and 1890, the latest unconfirmed report was in 1984. Although not officially declared extinct, a further survey in 1998 failed to turn up any trace of the bird.

Answer: Stephens Island wren

The Stephens Island wren (Xenicus lyalli) was a flightless bird indigenous to the very tiny outcrop. It was a small light-brown bird that hopped around the tiny island. Cats were introduced to Stephen's Island in February 1894 with the beginning of lighthouse construction one month earlier. David Lyall, who had an amateur's interest in natural history, noticed the importance of the wrens that were caught by the cats, and brought it to the attention of prominent naturalists. Later that same year the cats became feral and most likely eradicated the few remaining birds during the winter of 1894-1895. Stephens Island is located off the northeast tip of New Zealand's South Island.
Another wren lost by New Zealand was the slender bush wren (Xenicus longipes). The last specimens collected on the North Island was in 1850 while the bird persevered on the South Island until 1968. It was also plentiful on nearby Big South Cape Island until rats arrived there in 1962. In 1967 the remaining 6 birds were rescued and placed on predator-free Kaimohu Island but were seen no more by 1977.

The Sulu bleeding-heart (Gallicolumba menagei) once lived around the Sulu Archipelago, Philippines. The only two known specimens were recovered in 1891.

The crowned pigeon (Microgoura meeki) was a common and striking bird on the island of Choiseul, Solomon Islands. Also called the Choiseul crested pigeon, it was a bluish-grey ground bird with a yellowish-orange underbelly and a crest of thin palm-like hairs on its forehead. It was last recorded in 1904 when six birds were shot and collected for Lord Walter Rothschild by Albert Stewart Meek. Meek also collected one egg. Subsequent searches in 1927 and 1929 failed to turn up any sign of the bird. The Solomon Islands are located east of Papua New Guinea.

The spectacled cormorant (Phalacrocorax perspicillatus) was a relative of the pelican and lived around (later named) Bering Island and the Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia. The only naturalist to see the cormorant alive before its eventual extinction was (German) George Wilhelm Stellar, sailing aboard vessels commanded by (Dane) Vitus Bering under the patronage of Tsar Peter the Great. Reported common in 1741, the cormorant, a poor flier, was later hunted extensively by the Aleuts who settled on the island in 1826. Five specimens were collected between 1840 and 1850 and the species was believed to have died out shortly after.
Due to bad decisions and terrible weather, Bering, Stellar, and the crew of the ship "St. Peter" became stranded on Bering Island on November 5, 1741. Shortly after in December, Bering and many of his crew died from starvation and cold while Stellar and the remaining men eventually managed to get to Kamchatka, Russia. Unable by circumstances to return to Europe, Stellar wandered through Siberia and died of a fever on November 12, 1746 in Tyumen (Siberia). His most noteworthy discovery was the enormous "Stellar's sea cow". The sea cows, with adults measuring up to 30 feet long, were indigenous to Bering Island. They were hunted relentlessly by trappers and sealers for the next 25 years, eventually dying out by the early 1800's.

Answer: Tanna ground dove

The Tanna ground dove (Gallicolumba ferruginea) lived on the island of Tanna in the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu). The painting of the reddish-brown female was sketched by naturalist Georg Forster who accompanied James Cook on his second voyage to the South Sea in 1774. With Forster at the time was his father Johann Reinhold who noted "I went ashore, we shot a new pigeon and got a few plants and the fruit of the wild nutmeg". In the painting's margin was the notation: "Tanna, female, 17th August 1774". The exact time of extinction was estimated to have occurred no later than the early 19th century. Vanuata lies south-east of Papua New Guinea in the South Pacific. The ground dove was never seen or heard of again.

The Magdalena tinamou (Crypturellus saltuarius) was a species endemic to Colombia, South America and the only known specimen was collected on the foothills of the Sierra de Ocana in 1943. There was evidence noted in 2003 to indicate the bird might not be as yet extinct.

The Tristan moorhen (Gallinula nesiotis) was a flightless rail that lived on Tristan da Cunha, an isolated island located in the South Atlantic halfway between Uruguay, South America and the southern tip of Africa. Due to habitat loss, predation, and hunting, the species became very rare by 1873 and died out before the end of the 19th century.

The Tahitian sandpiper (Prosobonia leucoptera) was discovered during Captain James Cook's voyage of 1773-1777 and probably died out around the early 1800's. It is known only from the single yellowish-brown specimen collected in 1773 and on display in the Natural History Museum in Leiden, Holland.
On a similar note, the Tahitian red-billed rail (Rallus pacificus) is known only from an illustration made of the species by Georg Forster. The picture is on display at the Natural History Museum in London, England.

Answer: Undulated tinamou

The undulated tinamou (Crypturellus undulatus) remains a very mysterious bird whose habits and numbers remain unknown. All species of the tinamou are indigenous to South America, preferring tropical and dark forests. Normally wary of interlopers, they are rarely seen.

The Ula-ai-hawane (Ciridops anna) was a small honeycreeper once common to the rain forests of Hawaii. Known only from five specimens, the last one was collected on February 20, 1892 by naturalist George Munro near the Awini River (Mt. Kohala). Munro thought he may have sighted the bird one more time in 1937 on the Kahua ditch trail but he was unable to confirm it.

The upland moa (Megalapteryx didinus) was once endemic to New Zealand and one of the smallest of all moa species at 52 inches tall, weighing 55 lbs. It became the last species of moa in history, succumbing to extinction around the year 1500, although the possibility existed that the huge bird survived until the mid 1600's in the higher areas of New Zealand. Evidence from mummified moas found in dry, cold caves indicated that the bird was light brown except for its head and feet, which were black.

The Ua Pu monarch (Pomarea mira) was a small passerine that roamed the island of Ua Pu in the Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia. The last recorded sighting was of two immature birds in Hakahetau Valley in March, 1985 and subsequent searches between 1989 and 1999 failed to turn up any evidence of the monarch.

Answer: Vaurie's nightjar

The Vaurie's nightjar (Caprimulgus centralasicus) was never sighted again.

The short-toed nuthatch vanga (Hypositta perdita) was a small passerine known only from two young birds collected in Madagascar in 1931. A subsequent search in 1996 failed to turn up any trace of the bird.

The Vella Lavella ground dove (Gallicolumba jobiensis chalconota) was known only from four specimens collected from the Solomon Islands. There are no surviving records of this bird.

The Vinous-tinted thrush (Turdus poliocephalus vinitinctus) perished following the 1918 shipwreck of the Makambo (see #12).

Lord Howe Island, off the east coast of Australia, has the dubious distinction of losing several species to extinction. The island lost a pigeon, a parakeet, and a swamphen before the Mokambo shipwreck. The shipwreck was responsible for the loss of an owl, a warbler, a fantail, a thrush, two types of white-eyes, and a starling.

Answer: Wake Island rail

The Wake Island rail (Rallus wakensis) was first described by Walter Rothschild in 1903 and was the island's only native bird. Wake Island, a very small atoll in the North Pacific, is located about midway between Hawaii and the Phillipines. The bird thrived on the isolated island until the advent of World War Two. The Japanese troops were stationed on the island between 1942 and 1945. After 1945, the rail was seen no more.

The Aldabra warbler (Nestillas aldabranus) was discovered in 1967 on the Ile Malabar of Aldabra when two specimens were caught by Messrs. Benson and Perry. They subsequently found a nest with three eggs in December 1968. Aldabra is located in the Seychelles, north of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. The last reliable sighting was of a male in 1983 and subsequent searches in 1986 failed to turn up any trace of the bird.

The Samoan wood rail (Gallinula pacifica), a small dark bird, was first seen by John Stanislaw Kubary in 1869. Also known as the Samoan moorhen, it was last collected in 1873 during the British Challenger expedition to Samoa, halfway between Australia and French Polynesia in the South Pacific. Only eleven skins and two eggs remain of this species. Unconfirmed sightings were reported in 1987 and 2003.

The white-eyed river martin (Psuedochelidon sirintarae) was last spotted in 1986 at its roost site in Thailand.

Answer: Yellow rail

The yellow rail (Coturnicops noveboracensis) is very elusive and is rarely seen. Loss of habitat is the main reason for its decline in numbers.

The yellow-billed spoonbill (Platalea flavipes) is native to Australia and is on the IUCN Red List as "threatened"..

Yaldwyn's wren (Pachyplichas yaldwyni) was a native bird of New Zealand. Long extinct, there is no record of a saved specimen.

The Yakushima Seven Island thrush (Turdus celaenops yakushimensis), also called the Izu Islands thrush, is native to Ryukyu and Izu Islands of Japan. It was last collected in 1904. Although not seen since then, the bird is currently not listed as extinct. It has been placed on the IUCN Red List as "vulnerable" due to its limited range.

Answer: Double-banded argus pheasant

The argus pheasant (Argus bipunctatus) is known only by the feather sample, which did not match (the feathers of) either of the two known argus species in existence. There is no physical, photographic, or written evidence of the bird's existence. The feather is currently on display in the Natural History Museum in London, England.

Foghorn Leghorn (Bombastus hotairus?) is a unique and very talkative cartoon rooster. He has survived extinction thanks to his ability to thwart the attempts of the little chicken hawk to make a delicious meal out of him.
"I'm a chicken hawk and you're a chicken!"
"Ah say, boy, you don't want to eat me. Ah'm too scrawny. Now, see that dog over there..."

Tweety Bird (Cutasa buttonus?) is a small yellow bird first observed in 1942. He (she?) teamed up with Sylvester the Cat to entertain the children of the world. They are currently touring in tv land.

Big Bird (Sesametis streetus?) is a big yellow bird that popped up around 1969. He has since endeared himself to millions of children with his never-ending optimism and wide-eyed naivete. For years he associated with Mr. Snuffleupagus, a wooly mammoth-type creature long thought extinct (!) but later found to be real.

With the exceptions of the dodo (Mauritius, 1600's) and upland moa (New Zealand, 1500's), all the extinct species mentioned were gone within the last 250 years. A sobering thought. Another species that died out around the same time as the dodo and moa was the biggest, heaviest bird ever to walk planet Earth: Aepyornis maximus, the great elephant bird of Madagascar.

More bird extinctions occurred on small, isolated islands (New Zealand, Hawaii, Mauritius, etc.) than on the much larger land masses (Europe, Americas). Introduced animal predators, human encroachment, and (most of all) habitat/forest loss combined to kill off species that had nowhere to go or were unable to adapt quickly. Worldwide, these plus other factors continue to put irreversible stress on the roughly 8,000-10,000 bird species currently in existence.

ESTIMATED RATE OF BIRD EXTINCTION:
Before intensive human interaction (pre-1500) - 1 per 100 years.
After intensive human interaction (1500-present) - 1 per 4 years.
Revised rate (current) - 1 per year.
Projected rate (by 2099) - 10 per year.

This quiz is dedicated to:
- Rebecca and Benjamin.
- Bird lovers everywhere.
- Worldwide Wizards, (over) 100 unique individuals.
- All the bird species lost forever due to circumstances beyond their control.
- Jamaica, a small island of endemic birds.

Thank you for playing my sixth quiz creation.