The Samoan woodhen (Gallinula pacifica), also known as Samoan wood rail, is a nearly flightless rail endemic to the Samoan island of Savai'i that has been considered Critically Endangered, and possibly extinct. As it has evolved adaptations for a more terrestrial lifestyle and at least partly nocturnal habits, it is probably better placed in a distinct genus, Pareudiastes (which sometimes includes the more distinct Makira wood rail too[3]), but this issue has not yet been thoroughly researched. It was known as puna'e ("one that jumps up") to the native Samoans; this was said to relate to the bird's habit of making a jumping dash into cover when startled from its resting place.
This small gallinule had a length of about 25 cm. The plumage was darkish blue on head, neck and breast contrasted with an entirely black rump and tail. The upperparts were dark olivaceous with a greenish sheen. The bill and the frontal shield were yellowish to orange red. The eyes and the legs were red.
Ecologyedit
Due to its probably nocturnal habits it had large eyes. Its habitat were primary montane forests Its diet consists of insects and other small invertebrates which were preyed by digging the ground and leaf litter; captive birds became sickly when fed a vegetable diet. The eggs said to belong to this species were found in a nest on the ground which was made from twigs and grass. Natives claimed, however, that the puna'e nested in burrows; it is not clear if they confused the rail with petrels or shearwaters (which make similar grunting calls – see below – and nest in burrows) or whether they meant simply scraped-out hollows in the ground.
Extinctionedit
It was first seen by John Stanislaw Kubary in 1869 and last collected in 1873 during the British Challenger expedition. In all there are ten or eleven remaining specimens and one or two eggs in museums (e.g. in Leiden, New York, Liverpool and London).
It apparently became extinct in the 1870s due to predation by introduced species such as rats and feral cats. Additionally, it was noted to taste good and seems to have been hunted for food. Reed (1980) reported the testimony of a local who claimed the bird to be extinct since 1907.[4] However, there were unconfirmed sightings in upland rainforest in 1984 (August 22 and 23[5]), and 2003, and in the latter year, a deep, gulping call ooh-ooh-ooh call was heard to be given by the birds which does not agree with the vocalizations of the rail species known to survive on Savai'i.[citation needed] It is likely that fieldwork to determine the identity of the mysterious birds is to get underway soon, as there is increasing threat of wholesale logging.
^Hartlaub, Gustav & Finsch, Otto (1871). "On a collection of birds from Savai and Rarotonga Islands in the Pacific". Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. 1871: 21–32.
^Olson, Storrs L. (1975). "The South Pacific Gallinules of the Genus Pareudiastes" (PDF). Wilson Bull.87 (1): 1–5.
^Reed, Sylvia M. (1980). (PDF). Notornis. 27 (2): 151–159. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-10-17.
^Bellingham, Mark & Davis, Alison (1988). (PDF). Notornis. 35 (2): 117–128. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-10-24.
External linksedit
BirdLife International: Possible sighting of long lost rail
BirdLife Species Factsheet
of specimens RMNH 110.046 and RMNH 110.060 at Naturalis, Leiden (requires QuickTime browser plugin).
March 14, 2024
samoan, woodhen, gallinula, pacifica, also, known, samoan, wood, rail, nearly, flightless, rail, endemic, samoan, island, savai, that, been, considered, critically, endangered, possibly, extinct, evolved, adaptations, more, terrestrial, lifestyle, least, partl. The Samoan woodhen Gallinula pacifica also known as Samoan wood rail is a nearly flightless rail endemic to the Samoan island of Savai i that has been considered Critically Endangered and possibly extinct As it has evolved adaptations for a more terrestrial lifestyle and at least partly nocturnal habits it is probably better placed in a distinct genus Pareudiastes which sometimes includes the more distinct Makira wood rail too 3 but this issue has not yet been thoroughly researched It was known as puna e one that jumps up to the native Samoans this was said to relate to the bird s habit of making a jumping dash into cover when startled from its resting place Samoan woodhenDrawing by Joseph SmitConservation statusCritically endangered possibly extinct IUCN 3 1 1 Scientific classificationDomain EukaryotaKingdom AnimaliaPhylum ChordataClass AvesOrder GruiformesFamily RallidaeGenus GallinulaSpecies G pacificaBinomial nameGallinula pacifica Hartlaub amp Finsch 1871 2 SynonymsGallinula pacificus lapsus Pareudiastes pacificus 1871 Contents 1 Description 2 Ecology 3 Extinction 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksDescription editThis small gallinule had a length of about 25 cm The plumage was darkish blue on head neck and breast contrasted with an entirely black rump and tail The upperparts were dark olivaceous with a greenish sheen The bill and the frontal shield were yellowish to orange red The eyes and the legs were red Ecology editDue to its probably nocturnal habits it had large eyes Its habitat were primary montane forests Its diet consists of insects and other small invertebrates which were preyed by digging the ground and leaf litter captive birds became sickly when fed a vegetable diet The eggs said to belong to this species were found in a nest on the ground which was made from twigs and grass Natives claimed however that the puna e nested in burrows it is not clear if they confused the rail with petrels or shearwaters which make similar grunting calls see below and nest in burrows or whether they meant simply scraped out hollows in the ground Extinction editIt was first seen by John Stanislaw Kubary in 1869 and last collected in 1873 during the British Challenger expedition In all there are ten or eleven remaining specimens and one or two eggs in museums e g in Leiden New York Liverpool and London It apparently became extinct in the 1870s due to predation by introduced species such as rats and feral cats Additionally it was noted to taste good and seems to have been hunted for food Reed 1980 reported the testimony of a local who claimed the bird to be extinct since 1907 4 However there were unconfirmed sightings in upland rainforest in 1984 August 22 and 23 5 and 2003 and in the latter year a deep gulping call ooh ooh ooh call was heard to be given by the birds which does not agree with the vocalizations of the rail species known to survive on Savai i citation needed It is likely that fieldwork to determine the identity of the mysterious birds is to get underway soon as there is increasing threat of wholesale logging See also editCentral Savai i RainforestReferences edit BirdLife International 2013 Gallinula pacifica IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013 Retrieved 26 November 2013 old form url Hartlaub Gustav amp Finsch Otto 1871 On a collection of birds from Savai and Rarotonga Islands in the Pacific Proc Zool Soc Lond 1871 21 32 Olson Storrs L 1975 The South Pacific Gallinules of the Genus Pareudiastes PDF Wilson Bull 87 1 1 5 Reed Sylvia M 1980 The birds of Savai i Western Samoa PDF Notornis 27 2 151 159 Archived from the original PDF on 2008 10 17 Bellingham Mark amp Davis Alison 1988 Forest bird communities in Western Samoa PDF Notornis 35 2 117 128 Archived from the original PDF on 2007 10 24 External links editBirdLife International Possible sighting of long lost rail BirdLife Species Factsheet 3D view of specimens RMNH 110 046 and RMNH 110 060 at Naturalis Leiden requires QuickTime browser plugin Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Samoan woodhen amp oldid 1119404718, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
