Napier’s Caracara (Phalcoboenus napieri)  

This small genus of birds of prey contains four or five recent species and another recently extinct one.  

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This species was described in 2016 based on subfossil bones which were recovered from a peat bog on West Point Island, Falkland Islands, and which were dated to 5480 to 5200 BP..  

Napier’s Caracara was larger and more robust than the (Phalcoboenus australis (Gmelin)) [see photo], which today is the only bird of prey on these islands.  

The two species obviously lived sympatrically, feeding in the large seabird colonies. [1]  

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However, in my opinion, there is a slight chance, that the extinct form is nothing but a larger version of the surviving one. It is well known that some species were larger in former times, yet anthropogenic influences apparently adversely affect larger individuals within a population and thus lead the a decrease in individual size within this population.  

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References:  

[1] Mark P. Adams; Robin W. Woods: Mid-Holocene Falkland Islands bird bones from a peat deposit, including a new species of caracara. Emu 116(4): 370-378. 2016  

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edited: 23.03.2018