The Giant Nene was already described in 1943, its remains were found in 1926 at a depth of 25 m under a lava flow near a place named Kaumaike’ohu in the Ka’u District on the island of Hawai’i; it was actually the first fossil bird described from the Hawaiian Islands.

This form has widely been synonymized with a very large goose, that is known from subfossil remains also found on Hawai’i Island.

The Giant Nene was the largest member of the large Hawaiian goose radiation, it was more than twice the size of the still living Nene (Branta sandvicensis (Vigors)).

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References:

[1] S. L. Olson; H. F. James: Descriptions of thirty-two new species of birds from the Hawaiian Islands: Part I. Non-Passeriformes. Ornithological Monographs 45: 1-91. 1991

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edited: 05.05.2022