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Vitirallus watlingi Worthy, 2004:303

Viti Levu rail

 

 

Taxonomy & Nomenclature

Synonym/s: Vittirallus watlingi Worthy, 2004:303 (used by Hume & Walters, 2012:112)

 

Conservation Status

Extinct

Last record: Late Pleistocene or Holocene

 

Distribution

Viti Levu, Fiji

 

Biology & Ecology

 

 

Hypodigm

Holotype: NMNZ S.37543 (partial mandible; for a photo see [url=http://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/objectdetails.aspx?oid=397828]here[/url].

 

Type locality: "terminal chamber of Qara-ni-vokai, Voli Voli Cave, Viti Levu, Fiji"

 

Paratypes:

NMNZ S.37138 (107 bones)

NMNZ S.37543 (premaxilla)

 

 

Media

 

 

References

Original scientific description:

Worthy, Trevor H. (2004). The fossil rails (Aves: Rallidae) of Fiji with descriptions of a new genus and species. Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand. 34(3): 295-314.

 

Other references:

Hume, Julian Pender and Walters, Michael. (2012). Extinct Birds. London: T & AD Poyser. 544 pp.

Sayol, Ferran, Steinbauer, Manuel J., Blackburn, Tim M., Antonelli, Alexandre and Faurby, Søren. (2020). Anthropogenic extinctions conceal widespread evolution of flightlessness in birds. Science Advances 6(49): eabb6095. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abb6095 [Supplementary Material (Data File S1)]

Tennyson, Alan J. D. and Bartle, J. A. (2008). Catalogue of type specimens of birds in the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. Tuhinga 19: 185-207.

Tyrberg, Tommy. (2009). Holocene avian extinctions, pp. 63-106. In: Turvey, Samuel T. (ed.). Holocene Extinctions. Oxford, UK & New York, USA: Oxford University Press. xii + 352 pp.

Worthy, Trevor H. and Anderson, Atholl. (2009). Results of palaeofaunal research, pp. 41-62. In: Clark, Geoffrey Richard and Anderson, Atoll (eds.). The Early Prehistory of Fiji. Terra Australis 31. Canberra: ANU E Press. 437 pp.

 

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