It was for a long time only known from a single description, that of Dubois published in 1674. He stated:
Bitterns or Great Egrets, large as capons, but very fat and good. They have grey plumage, each feather spotted with white, the neck and beak like a Heron, and the feet green, made like the feet of Poullets d'Inde (Porphyrio, W.R.). This bird lives on fish.[2]
When subfossil bones were finally recovered in the late 20th century, they were initially described under a new name as the original description was believed to be invalid. However, only the genus initially assigned by Rothschild was incorrect.
The Réunion night heron was the largest Nycticorax of the Mascarene Islands and larger even than the nankeen night heron. Unlike its relatives from Mauritius and Rodrigues, it was not adapted to a terrestrial lifestyle; its wings were strong and its legs not adapted to chasing prey on foot. Dubois mentions that the birds lived on fish.
Extinctionedit
Of all the reports mentioning herons on Réunion, only the one of Dubois can be assigned to this species. Significantly, Jean Feuilley in 1705 did not mention these birds, and only in the second half of the 18th century are herons on Réunion referred to again, with the striated heron being the only species found, but "very rare". Thus, the Réunion night heron probably became extinct around 1700. However, as there are no good reasons for its disappearance (neither habitat destruction nor introduced predators would have affected it much, nor does it seem to have been a favourite target for hunters), it might have persisted until considerably later.
Referencesedit
^BirdLife International (2016). "Nycticorax duboisi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T22728781A94996515. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22728781A94996515.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
Rothschild, Walter (1907): [Ardea duboisi]. In: Extinct Birds: 114.
April 11, 2024
réunion, night, heron, nycticorax, duboisi, extinct, species, heron, formerly, occurring, mascarene, island, réunion, conservation, statusextinct, 1700, iucn, scientific, classificationdomain, eukaryotakingdom, animaliaphylum, chordataclass, avesorder, pelecan. The Reunion night heron Nycticorax duboisi is an extinct species of heron formerly occurring on the Mascarene island of Reunion Reunion night heronConservation statusExtinct c 1700 IUCN 3 1 1 Scientific classificationDomain EukaryotaKingdom AnimaliaPhylum ChordataClass AvesOrder PelecaniformesFamily ArdeidaeGenus NycticoraxSpecies N duboisiBinomial name Nycticorax duboisi Rothschild 1907 Location of Reunion encircled SynonymsArdea duboisi Rothschild 1907Megaphoyx duboisi Hachisuka 1953Nycticorax borbonensis Cowles 1994It was for a long time only known from a single description that of Dubois published in 1674 He stated Bitterns or Great Egrets large as capons but very fat and good They have grey plumage each feather spotted with white the neck and beak like a Heron and the feet green made like the feet of Poullets d Inde Porphyrio W R This bird lives on fish 2 When subfossil bones were finally recovered in the late 20th century they were initially described under a new name as the original description was believed to be invalid However only the genus initially assigned by Rothschild was incorrect The Reunion night heron was the largest Nycticorax of the Mascarene Islands and larger even than the nankeen night heron Unlike its relatives from Mauritius and Rodrigues it was not adapted to a terrestrial lifestyle its wings were strong and its legs not adapted to chasing prey on foot Dubois mentions that the birds lived on fish Extinction editOf all the reports mentioning herons on Reunion only the one of Dubois can be assigned to this species Significantly Jean Feuilley in 1705 did not mention these birds and only in the second half of the 18th century are herons on Reunion referred to again with the striated heron being the only species found but very rare Thus the Reunion night heron probably became extinct around 1700 However as there are no good reasons for its disappearance neither habitat destruction nor introduced predators would have affected it much nor does it seem to have been a favourite target for hunters it might have persisted until considerably later References edit BirdLife International 2016 Nycticorax duboisi IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016 e T22728781A94996515 doi 10 2305 IUCN UK 2016 3 RLTS T22728781A94996515 en Retrieved 12 November 2021 Rothschild 1907 p 114 Rothschild Walter 1907 Ardea duboisi In Extinct Birds 114 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Reunion night heron amp oldid 1128514434, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
