Tag Archives: Grande Terre

Anas gracilis ssp. ‘New Caledonia’

New Caledonian Grey Teal (Anas gracilis ssp.)

This form is known only from subfossil remains that had been found on the island of Grande Terre, New Caledonia.

This was probably an endemic form of the Grey Teal (Anas gracilis Buller), a species that is otherwise known from Australia, New Guinea and New Zealand, however, this species is sometimes found on New Caledonia as a vagrant, thus it is also possible that the subfossil remains descent from such vagrant birds. [1]

The form is mentioned here for the sake of completeness.

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References:

[1] David W. Steadman: Extinction and biogeography of Tropical Pacific Birds. University of Chicago Press 2006

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edited: 10.11.2021

Accipiter quartus Balouet & Olson

Gracile Goshawk (Accipiter quartus)

This species was described in 1989; it is known only by subfossil remains that were recovered from cave deposits on the island of Grande Terre, New Caledonia. [1]

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References:

[1] J. C. Balouet; Storrs L. Olson: Fossil birds from Late Quaternary deposits in New Caledonia. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 469: 23-27. 1989

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edited: 23.02.2022

Ninox sp. ‘New Caledonia’

New Caledonian Boobook (Ninox sp.)

This taxon is known only from subfossil remains that were found in the deposits of at least two caves on the western coast of the island of Grande Terre, New Caledonia.

This form is believed to be extinct, however, there’s a slight chance that it may still survive, since the nocturnal avifauna of the New Caledonian islands still is very much underexplored.

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edited: 05.11.2021

Leiocephalus sp. ‘ Guadeloupe’

Guadeloupe Curly-tailed Lizard (Leiocephalus sp.)

This undescribed form, which may or may not be related to or even conspecific with the Barbuda Curly-tailed Lizard (Leiocephalus cuneus Etheridge) is known from subfossil remains of Latest Holocene age found in 1984 in an unnamed cave at Pointe du Capucin at the northern shore of the island of Basse Terre in the Guadeloupe archipelago.

The Guadeloupe Curly-tailed Lizard survived into historical times, the remains have not yet been dated but were found associated with the bones of rats, which were introduced to the Caribbean only in the 15th century. [1]

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References:

[1] Gregory K. Pregill: Systematics of the West Indian Lizard Genus Leiocephalus (Squamata: Iguania: Tropiduridae). Miscellaneous Publications of the Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas 84: 1-69. 1992

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edited: 08.09.2019

Porphyrio kukwiedei Balouet & Olson

New Caledonian Swamphen (Porphyrio kukwiedei)

The New Caledonian Swamphen was described in 1989 based on subfossil bones that were excavated from deposits from the Pindai Cave complex on the western coast of Grande Terre, New Caledonia. 

The species was about the same size as the New Zealand Takahe (Porphyrio hochstetteri (A. B. Meyer)) but was more lightly built, it was likewise flightless, the males probably were larger then the females. [2]

The New Caledonian Swamphen may in fact have survived into quite recent times, this can be assumed from a note that is given at the description of another New Caledonian bird species, the now likewise extinct New Caledonian Rail (Gallirallus lafresnayanus Verreaux & Des Murs).:

Nouvelle-Calédonie, où il est nommé, par les indigènes, N’dino, camp de Morari. It vit dans les lieux marécageux, et arriverait, dit la note, a la taille du Dindon! Est-ce la même espèce, ou bien y en aurait-il une autre qui atteindrait cette dimension?” [1]

translation:

New Caledonia, where he is named, by the natives, N’dino, camp of Morari. It lives in marshy places, and would arrive, says the note, the size of the turkey! Is it the same species, or would there be another one that would reach this dimension?

This description, in my opinion, fits better with the far larger New Caledonian Swamphen than with the New Caledonian Rail.

There is furthermore an account that speaks about old people who remember a bird that was similar to the Australasian Swamphen (Porphyrio melanotus (Temminck)), that still is commonly found in New Caledonia, except for being much larger and having a grey tail and a white throat. Unfortunately I do not find the source for that statement anymore.

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References:

[1] M. M. Jules Verreaux; O des Murs: Description d’Oiseux nouveaux de la Nouvelle-Calédonie et indication des espèces déjà connues de ce pays. Revue et Magasin de Zoologie pure et appliquée. Ser. II 12: 431-443. 1860
[2] J. C. Balouet; Storrs L. Olson: Fossil birds from Late Quaternary deposits in New Caledonia. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 469: 23-27. 1989

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edited: 16.05.2019

Hipposideros sp. ‘New Caledonia’

New Caledonian Roundleaf Bat (Hipposideros sp.)

The New Caledonian Roundleaf Bat is known from subfossil remains that were recovered from Holocene deposits in the Mé Auré Cave near the southern shore of Grande Terre, New Caledonia.

The remains were compared to the bones of several other congeneric species from the nearest regions but did not match to any of them, thus it most likely was a distinct species that might well have been endemic to New Caledonia. [1]

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References:

[1] Suzanne J. Hand; Jack A. Grant-Mackie: Late-Holocene bats of Mé Auré Cave, New Caledonia: Evidence of human consumption and a new species record from the recent past. The Holocene 22(1): 79-90. 2011

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edited: 17.05.2022

Accipiter efficax Balouet & Olson

Powerful Goshawk (Accipiter efficax)

This species was described in 1989; it is known only by subfossil remains that were recovered from cave deposits on the island of Grande Terre, New Caledonia. [1]

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References:

[1] J. C. Balouet; Storrs L. Olson: Fossil birds from Late Quaternary deposits in New Caledonia. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 469: 23-27. 1989

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edited: 23.01.2022

Troglodytes aedon ssp. guadeloupensis (Cory)

Guadeloupe House Wren (Troglodytes aedon ssp. guadeloupensis 

This form, described in 1886, occurred on the islands of Basse Terre and Grande Terre, Guadeloupe.  

The Guadeloupe House Wren reached a length of about 11,5 cm, it was quite like the Grenada House Wren (Troglodytes aedon ssp. grenadensis (Lawrence)) (see photo) or the Martinique House Wren (Troglodytes aedon ssp. martinicensis (Sclater)), differing by its shorter wings.  

The form was last recorded during field observations from 25 May through 1 June of the year 1973.:  

At 10:30 while standing at the beginning of the trail at the end of the raod a wren sang a few meters down slope then flew to a perch in bright sunlight. We observed it with 7 x 50 binoculars for 1 min at a distance of 10 m, recognizing it as a Guadaloupe House Wren before it flew into dense brush.” [2]

During these field observations at least five birds where seen, including at least four singing males.  

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References:  

[1] Charles B. Cory: Descriptions of new species of birds from the West Indies. The Auk 3(3): 381-382. 1886 
[2] John C. Barlow: Another colony of the Guadeloupe House Wren. Wilson Bulletin 90(4): 635-637. 1978 
[3] Dieter Luther: Die ausgestorbenen Vögel der Welt. Westarp Wissenschaften 1986  

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Photo: Mike’s Birds

(under creative commons license (2.0)) 
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0

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edited: 06.09.2019

Turnix novaecaledoniae Ogilvie-Grant

New Caledonian Buttonquail (Turnix novaecaledoniae)

The New Caledonian Buttonquail is known only by the single type specimen, a male that was apparently found on Grande Terre, New Caledonia sometimes before 1889; the species is also known by numerous subfossil remains that were recovered from cave deposits.

The species reached a size of about 19 cm. 

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The New Caledonian Buttonquail is sometimes considered a subspecies of the Painted Buttonquail (Turnix varius (Latham)) from Australia, but being clearly very distinct from that species it is now considered a full species.

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References:

[1] Stuart H. M. Butchart; Stephen Lowe; Rob W. Martin; Andy Symes; James R. S. Westrip; Hannah Wheatley: Which bird species have gone extinct? A novel quantitative classification approach. Biological Conservation 227: 9-18. 2018

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edited: 03.10.2020

Caloenas canacorum Balouet & Olson

Kanaka Pigeon (Caloenas canacorum)

The Kanaka Pigeon was described in 1989, it is known from remains of Holocene age that were found on Grande Terre, New Caledonia as well as on the small island of Lifuka, Tonga.

The species was larger than its next living relative, the Nicobar Pigeon (Caloenas nicobarica L.), otherwise both species apparently shared a similar lifestyle, wandering over large distances and breeding on small, predator-free islands.

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edited: 29.05.2019

Tyto letocarti Balouet & Olson

New Caledonian Barn Owl (Tyto letocarti)

The New Caledonian Barn Owl was described in 1989 based on subfossil bones that had been recovered from cave deposits on the island of Grande Terre, New Caledonia. [1]

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References:

[1] J. C. Balouet; Storrs L. Olson: Fossil birds from Late Quaternary deposits in New Caledonia. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology. 469: 18–19. 1989

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edited: 24.04.2019

Coenocorypha neocaledonica Worthy, Anderson & Sand

New Caledonian Snipe (Coenocorypha neocaledonica 

This species, finally described in 2013, was until then known only from subfossil bones, which were found together with the remains of numerous other species of animals in the deposits of several caves on the Pindai Peninsula.  

The New Caledonian Snipe was the second largest species of its genus, its flight apparat was very well developed, thus it obviously was a very good flyer.  

The species disappeared sometimes after the colonization of New Caledonia’s islands at about 1500 B.C.E..  

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References:  

[1] David W. Steadman: Extinction and Biogeography of Tropical Pacific Birds. University of Chicago Press 2006 
[2] Trevor H. Worthy; Atholl Anderson; Christophe Sand: An extinct Austral snipe (Aves: Coenocorypha) from New Caledonia. Emu 113(4): 383-393. 2013  

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edited: 13.10.2016