South Island kōkako
| South Island kōkako | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| North Island kōkako (front) and South Island kōkako (rear) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Subclass: | Neornithes |
| Infraclass: | Neognathae |
| Superorder: | Neoaves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Suborder: | Passeri |
| Infraorder: | Passerida |
| Family: | Callaeidae |
| Genus: | Callaeas |
| Species: | C. cinerea |
| Binomial name | |
|
Callaeas cinerea (Gmelin, 1788) |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
C. cinerea cinerea |
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C. cinerea cinerea
The South Island kōkako (Callaeas cinereus) is a perhaps-extinct forest bird endemic to the South Island of New Zealand. Unlike its close relative the North Island kõkako it had largely orange wattles, with only a small patch of blue at the base, and was also known as the orange-wattled crow (though it was not a corvid). The last accepted sighting in 2007 was the first considered genuine since 1967, although there have been several other unauthenticated reports.
The kōkako was first described by German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in 1788 as Glaucopis cinerea, from the Latin cinereus ("grey"). For some time the North Island and South Island birds were considered subspecies of Callaeas cinerea, but since 2001 North Island birds have been officially recognised as C. wilsoni, and genetic evidence confirms their difference. Although the genus Callaeas is masculine, the species epithet cinerea is not masculinised to match, though some authors have argued it should be.
Like the North Island kōkako, this was a slate-grey bird with long legs and a small black mask; Reischek considered its plumage slightly lighter than the North Island species. Its wattles were distinctly orange in colour with a dark blue base; young birds had much lighter wattles. It seems to have spent more time on the ground than the North Island species, but been a better flier. Kōkako have distinctive organ- and flute-like duetting calls. Early explorer Charlie Douglas described the South Island kōkako call: "Their notes are very few, but the sweetest and most mellow toned I ever heard a bird produce."
At the time of European settlement, South Island kōkako were found on the West Coast from northwest Nelson to Fiordland, as well as Stewart Island, Banks Peninsula, and the Catlins. Subfossil bones suggest they were formerly found throughout the South Island, but forest burning by Polynesians eliminated them from dry eastern lowland forest. Introduced mammalian predators and forest clearance by settlers reduced their numbers further: by 1900 the bird was uncommon in the South Island and Stewart Island, and had almost disappeared by 1960. Its vulnerability compared to the North Island species was perhaps due to its foraging and nesting close to the ground.
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Wikipedia