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List of Late Quaternary prehistoric bird species

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For a list of birds known only from fossils, see List of fossil bird genera. For birds that have become extinct since the year 1500, see List of extinct bird species since 1500.

Late Quaternary prehistoric birds are avian taxa that became extinct during the Late Quaternary – the Late Pleistocene or Early Holocene – and before recorded history, specifically before they could be studied alive by ornithological science. They had died out before the period of global scientific exploration that started in the late 15th century. In other words, this list deals with avian extinctions between 40,000 BC and AD 1500. For the purposes of this article, a "bird" is any member of the clade Neornithes, that is, any descendant of the most recent common ancestor of all currently living birds.

Artist's rendition of a Haast's eagle attacking two South Island giant moa

The birds are known from their remains, which are subfossil; as the remains are not completely fossilized, they may yield organic material for molecular analyses to provide additional clues for resolving their taxonomic affiliations. Some birds are also known from folk memory, as in the case of Haast's eagle in New Zealand.

The extinction of the taxa in this list was coincident with the expansion of Homo sapiens beyond Africa and Eurasia, and in most cases, anthropogenic factors played a crucial part in their extinction, be it through hunting, introduced predators or habitat alteration. It is notable that a large proportion of the species are from oceanic islands, especially in Polynesia. Bird taxa that evolved on oceanic islands are usually very vulnerable to hunting or predation by rats, pigs, dogs or cats (animals commonly introduced by humans) as they evolved in the absence of mammalian predators, and therefore have only rudimentary predator avoidance behavior. Many, especially rails, have additionally become flightless for the same reason and thus present even easier prey.

Taxon extinctions taking place before the Late Quaternary happened in the absence of significant human interference. Rather, reasons for extinction are random abiotic events such as bolide impacts, climate changes, mass volcanic eruptions, etc. Alternatively, species may have become extinct due to evolutionary displacement by successor or competitor taxa – it is notable for example that in the early Neogene, seabird biodiversity was much higher than today; this is probably due to competition by the radiation of marine mammals after that time. The relationships of these ancient birds are often hard to determine, as many are known only from very fragmentary remains and complete fossilization precludes analysis of information from DNA, RNA or protein sequencing.

Extinct bird species differed from still-existing birds by being larger, mostly restricted to islands, and often flightless. These factors made them especially vulnerable to human prosecution and to other anthropogenically related declines.[1]

Taxonomic list of Late Quaternary prehistoric birds

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All of these birds are in Neornithes.

Paleognathes

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Struthioniformes

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The ostriches

†Aepyornithiformes

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The elephant birds of Madagascar

†Dinornithiformes

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The moa of New Zealand

†Gastornithiformes

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An extinct order of giant flightless fowl.

Anseriformes

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The group that includes modern ducks, geese and swans.

Pangalliformes

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The group that includes modern chickens and quails.

True Galliformes

Charadriiformes

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Gulls, auks and shorebirds

Charadrii

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Scolopaci

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Lari

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Gruiformes

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The group that includes modern rails and cranes.

Eurypygiformes

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Procellariiformes

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The group that includes modern albatrosses, shearwaters, petrels and storm petrels.

  • Procellariidae – petrels
    • Extinct species of extant genera
    • Placement unresolved
      • Procellariidae sp. (Easter Island, East Pacific) – possibly an extirpated population of a still-existing species

Sphenisciformes

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Ciconiiformes

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Suliformes

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The group that includes modern boobies, gannets and cormorants.

Pelecaniformes

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  • Ardeidae – herons
  • Threskiornithidae – ibises
    • †Apteribis
      • Maui highland ibis, Apteribis brevis (Maui, Hawaiian Islands)[13]: 23–28 
      • Molokaʻi ibis, Apteribis glenos (Molokaʻi, Hawaiian Islands)[13]: 22–23 
      • Maui lowland ibis, Apteribis sp. (Maui, Hawaiian Islands)
      • Lanai ibis, Apteribis sp. (Lanai, Hawaiian Islands)
    • †Xenicibis

Cathartiformes

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Phoenicopteriformes

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The group that includes modern flamingos.

Mesitornithiformes

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  • Mesitornithidae – mesites
    • Extinct species of extant genera
      • Monias sp. (Madagascar)

Columbiformes

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Cuculiformes

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Accipitriformes

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Birds of prey

  • Accipitridae – hawks and eagles
    • †Bermuteo
    • †Amplibuteo
    • †Gigantohierax
      • Gigantohierax suarezi (Cuba, West Indies)
      • Gigantohierax itchei (Cuba, West Indies)
    • †Titanohierax
      • Titanohierax gloveralleni (Bahamas, West Indies)
      • Titanohierax sp. (Hispaniola, West Indies)
    • Extinct species of extant genera
    • Extinct subspecies of extant species

Caprimulgiformes

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Nightjars and potoos

Aegotheliformes

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Owlet-nightjars

Apodiformes

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Swifts and hummingbirds.

Bucerotiformes

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Hornbills and relatives. Formerly included in Coraciiformes.

Piciformes

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Woodpeckers, puffbirds and jacamars.

  • Picidae – woodpeckers
    • Extinct species of extant genera
      • Colaptes
        • Bermuda flicker, Colaptes oceanicus (Bermuda, West Atlantic) – known from Late Pleistocene and Holocene bones, but may have persisted until the 17th century[24]

Coraciiformes

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Strigiformes

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True owls and barn owls.

Falconiformes

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Psittaciformes

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  • Placement unresolved
    • Psittaciformes gen. et sp. indet. (Rota, Marianas) – cf. Cacatua / Eclectus?
  • Strigopidae – kakas and kakapos
    • Extinct species of extant genera
  • Cacatuidae – cockatoos
  • Psittacidae – parrots, parakeets, and lorikeets
    • Extinct species of extant genera
    • Extinct subspecies of extant species
    • Placement unresolved
      • Psittacidae gen. et sp. indet. 1 (Easter Island)
      • Psittacidae gen. et sp. indet. 2 (Easter Island)
      • Psittacidae gen. et sp. indet. (Guam, Marianas) – cf. Trichoglossus / Vini?

Passeriformes

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See also

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References

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Citations

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  1. ^ Fromm, Amir; Meiri, Shai; McGuire, Jenny (2021). "Big, flightless, insular and dead: Characterising the extinct birds of the Quaternary". Journal of Biogeography. 48 (9): 2350–2359. doi:10.1111/jbi.14206. S2CID 237285682.
  2. ^ Buffetaut1, Eric; Angst, Delphine (2017). "How Large was the Giant Ostrich of China?". EVOLUÇÃO – Revista de Geistória e Pré-História. 2 (1): 6–8. Retrieved 9 January 2023.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ Jain, Sonal; Rai, Niraj; Kumar, Giriraj; Pruthi, Parul Aggarwal; Thangaraj, Kumarasamy; Bajpai, Sunil; Pruthi, Vikas (2017). "Ancient DNA Reveals Late Pleistocene Existence of Ostriches in Indian Sub-Continent". PLOS ONE. 12 (3): e0164823. Bibcode:2017PLoSO..1264823J. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0164823. PMC 5342186. PMID 28273082.
  4. ^ Hansford, J. P.; Turvey, S. T. (2018-09-26). "Unexpected diversity within the extinct elephant birds (Aves: Aepyornithidae) and a new identity for the world's largest bird". Royal Society Open Science. 5 (9): 181295. Bibcode:2018RSOS....581295H. doi:10.1098/rsos.181295. PMC 6170582. PMID 30839722.
  5. ^ Grealy, Alicia; Miller, Gifford H.; Phillips, Matthew J.; Clarke, Simon J.; Fogel, Marilyn; Patalwala, Diana; Rigby, Paul; Hubbard, Alysia; Demarchi, Beatrice; Collins, Matthew; Mackie, Meaghan; Sakalauskaite, Jorune; Stiller, Josefin; Clarke, Julia A.; Legendre, Lucas J. (2023-02-28). "Molecular exploration of fossil eggshell uncovers hidden lineage of giant extinct bird". Nature Communications. 14 (1): 914. doi:10.1038/s41467-023-36405-3. ISSN 2041-1723. PMC 9974994.
  6. ^ Miller, G. H.; Magee, J. W.; Johnson, B. J.; Fogel, M. L.; Spooner, N. A.; McCulloch, M. T.; Ayliffe, L. K. (1999-01-08). "Pleistocene Extinction of Genyornis newtoni: Human Impact on Australian Megafauna". Science. 283 (5399): 205–208. doi:10.1126/science.283.5399.205. PMID 9880249.
  7. ^ "Paradise shelduck | Pūtangitangi | New Zealand Birds Online". www.nzbirdsonline.org.nz. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
  8. ^ Emsile, Steven D. (1985). ”A New Species of Teal from the Pleistocene (Rancholabrean) of Wyoming” https://sora.unm.edu/node/24087
  9. ^ Mitchell, Kieren J.; Wood, Jamie R.; Scofield, R. Paul; Llamas, Bastien; Cooper, Alan (2014). "Ancient mitochondrial genome reveals unsuspected taxonomic affinity of the extinct Chatham duck (Pachyanas chathamica) and resolves divergence times for New Zealand and sub-Antarctic brown teals". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 70: 420–428. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2013.08.017. PMID 23994164.
  10. ^ Guthrie, David A.; Thomas, Howell W.; Kennedy, George L. (2000). "An extinct Late Pleistocene Puffin from the Southern California Channel Islands. (Aves: Alcidae)" (PDF). Proceedings of a Fifth California Islands Symposium: 525–530.
  11. ^ Olson, Storrs L. (1978). "A paleontological perspective of West Indian birds and mammals" (PDF). In Gill, Frank (ed.). Zoogeography in the Caribbean: The 1975 Leidy Medal Symposium. Special Publication 13. Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. pp. 99–117 [106]. ISBN 1422317854.
  12. ^ William Suárez (2020). "The fossil avifauna of the tar seeps Las Breas de San Felipe, Matanzas, Cuba". Zootaxa. 4780 (1): zootaxa.4780.1.1. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4780.1.1. PMID 33055754. S2CID 219510089.
  13. ^ a b c Olson, Storrs L.; James, Helen F (1991). "Descriptions of Thirty-Two New Species of Birds from the Hawaiian Islands: Part I. Non-Passeriformes". Ornithological Monographs. 45 (45): 1–88. doi:10.2307/40166794. hdl:10088/1745. JSTOR 40166794.
  14. ^ Boessenkool, Sanne; et al. (2008). "Relict or colonizer? Extinction and range expansion of penguins in southern New Zealand". Proc. R. Soc. B. 276 (1658): 815–21. doi:10.1098/rspb.2008.1246. PMC 2664357. PMID 19019791.
  15. ^ van Tets, G.F. (1994). "An extinct new species of cormorant (Phalacrocoracidae, Aves) from a Western Australian peat swamp". Records of the South Australian Museum. 27 (2): 135–138.
  16. ^ Rawlence, Nicolas J.; Till, Charlotte E.; Easton, Luke J.; Spencer, Hamish G.; Schuckard, Rob; Melville, David S.; Scofield, R. Paul; Tennyson, Alan J.D.; Rayner, Matt J.; Waters, Jonathan M.; Kennedy, Martyn (2017). "Speciation, range contraction and extinction in the endemic New Zealand King Shag complex". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 115: 197–209. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2017.07.011. PMID 28803756.
  17. ^ a b c Balouet, J.C.; Olson, Storrs L. (1989). "Fossil birds from Late Quaternary deposits in New Caledonia". Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology. 469 (469): 18–19. doi:10.5479/si.00810282.469.
  18. ^ Olson, Storrs L.; Suárez, William (2007-04-20). "The Cuban fossil eagle Aquila borrasi Arredondo: A scaled-up version of the Great Black-Hawk Buteogallus urubitinga (Gmelin)" (PDF). Journal of Raptor Research. 41 (4). Raptor Research Foundation: 288–298. doi:10.3356/0892-1016(2007)41[288:TCFEAB]2.0.CO;2. S2CID 55380044.
  19. ^ Hailer, F., James, H.F., Olson, S.L., & Fleischer, R.C. (2015). Distinct and extinct: genetic differentiation of the Hawaiian eagle. Molecular phylogenetics and evolution, 83, 40-43
  20. ^ Goodman, Steven M. (1994). "Description of a new species of subfossil eagle from Madagascar: Stephanoaetus (Aves: Falconiformes) from the deposits of Ampasambazimba". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington (107): 421–428.
  21. ^ Olson, Storrs L. (1985). "A new species of Siphonorhis from Quaternary cave deposits in Cuba (Aves: Caprimulgidae)" (PDF). Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 98 (2): 526–532. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2014-09-03.
  22. ^ Holdaway, Richard N.; Jones, Martin D.; Athfield, Nancy R. Beavan (December 2002). "Late Holocene extinction of the New Zealand owlet-nightjar". Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand. 32 (4): 653–667. doi:10.1080/03014223.2002.9517714. S2CID 129691446.
  23. ^ Steadman, David W. (8 July 2002). "A new species of swiftlet (Aves: Apodidae) from the late Quaternary of Mangaia, Cook Islands, Oceania". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 22 (2): 326–331. doi:10.1671/0272-4634(2002)022[0326:ANSOSA]2.0.CO;2. S2CID 84817651.
  24. ^ Olson, Storrs L. (2013). "Fossil woodpeckers from Bermuda with the description of a new species of Colaptes (Aves: Picidae)". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 126 (#1): 17–24. doi:10.2988/0006-324X-126.1.17. S2CID 84248107.
  25. ^ Goodman, Steven M. (2000). "A description of a new species of Brachypteracias (Family Brachypteraciidae) from the Holocene of Madagascar". Ostrich. 71 (1–2): 318–322. doi:10.1080/00306525.2000.9639941. S2CID 83685435.
  26. ^ a b Suárez, William; Olson, Storrs L. (2020). "Systematics and distribution of the living and fossil small barn owls of the West Indies (Aves: Strigiformes: Tytonidae)". Zootaxa. 4830 (3): 544–564. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4830.3.4. PMID 33056145. S2CID 222819958.
  27. ^ Wetmore, Alexander (1937). "Bird Remains from Cave Deposits on Great Exuma Island in the Bahamas" (PDF). Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College. 80: 427–441.
  28. ^ Olson, Storrs L. (2008). "A New Species of Large, Terrestrial Caracara from Holocene Deposits in Southern Jamaica (Aves: Falconidae)". Journal of Raptor Research. 42 (4). The Raptor Research Foundation: 265–272. doi:10.3356/JRR-08-18.1. S2CID 84510858.
  29. ^ Millener, P. R. (December 1988). "Contributions to New Zealand's Late Quaternary avifauna. 1: Pachyplichas, a new genus of wren (Aves: Acanthisittidae), with two new species". Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand. 18 (4): 383–406. doi:10.1080/03036758.1988.10426464.
  30. ^ Millener, P. R.; Worthy, T.H. (1991). "Contributions to New Zealand's late Quaternary avifauna. II. Dendroscansor decurvirostris, a new genus and species of wren (Aves: Acanthisittidae)". Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand. 21: 179–200. doi:10.1080/03036758.1991.10431406.
  31. ^ Hume, J. P. (2014). "Systematics, morphology, and ecological history of the Mascarene starlings (Aves: Sturnidae) with the description of a new genus and species from Mauritius" (PDF). Zootaxa. 3849 (1): 1–75. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3849.1.1. PMID 25112426.
  32. ^ Rando, J.C; Pieper, H.; Olson, Storrs L.; Pereira, F.; Alcover, J.A. (2017-06-27). "A new extinct species of large bullfinch (Aves: Fringillidae: Pyrrhula ) from Graciosa Island (Azores, North Atlantic Ocean)". Zootaxa. 4282 (3): 567. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4282.3.9. ISSN 1175-5334.
  33. ^ Rando, J. C.; Lopez, M.; Segui, B. (February 1999). "A New Species of Extinct Flightless Passerine" (PDF). The Condor. 101 (1): 1–13. doi:10.2307/1370440. JSTOR 1370440. Retrieved 2008-08-01.

General

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