Ninox novaeseelandiae albaria (Ramsey, 1888:36)
Lord Howe boobook owl
Taxonomy & Nomenclature
Synonym/s: Ninox albaria Ramsay, 1888:36 (original combination); Spiloglaux albaria (Ramsey, 1888:36)
Conservation Status
Extinct
Last record: 1950's (Hutton, 1991:63)
IUCN RedList status: Extinct
A brief hope among some residents of the island that the subspecies might be extant after a Ninox spp. was heard calling twice and a specimen found dead (Benns, 2019), however further analysis revealed it to be a male Tasmanian Boobook (Ninox leucopsis) (Tsang et al., 2022)
Distribution
Lord Howe Island, New South Wales, Australia
Biology & Ecology
Hypodigm
Syntypes:
AM 0.1428 (adult, unsexed)
AM 0.1429 (adult, unsexed)
AM 0.10143 (adult, unsexed)
AM 0.18709 (adult, unsexed)
Other specimens:
AMNH (seven skins)
Media
Above: illustration from Mathews (1928).
References
Original scientific description:
Ramsay, E. P. (1888). Tabular List of all the Australian Birds at present known to the author, showing the Distribution of the Species over the continent of Australia and adjacent islands. Sydney: E. P. Ramsay (self published). 38 pp.
Other references:
Benns, M. (2019). Rats! We killed a dead animal: Island in flap as rodent poison slays an ‘extinct’ owl. Daily Telegraph (Sydney), 7 September 2019, 15.
BirdLife International. (2012). Ninox novaeseelandiae. In: IUCN 2013. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.1. (http://www.iucnredlist.org). Downloaded on 25 August 2013.
Department of Environment and Climate Change (NSW). (2007). Lord Howe Island Biodiversity Management Plan Appendices. Department of Environment and Climate Change (NSW), Sydney. vii + 267 pp.
del Hoyo, J., A. Elliott & J. Sargatal (1999). Handbook of the Birds of the World. In: Barn-owls to Hummingbirds. Volume 5. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain.
Department of the Environment (2014). Ninox novaeseelandiae albaria in Species Profile and Threats Database, Department of the Environment, Canberra. Available from: http://www.environment.gov.au/sprat. Accessed Sat, 22 Feb 2014 21:42:06 +1100.
Disney, H.J. de S. & C.N. Smithers (1972). The distribution of terrestrial and freshwater birds on Lord Howe Island, in comparison with Norfolk Island. Australian Zoologist 17: 1-11.
Eck S, Busse H (1973) Eulen. NBB, Wittenberg.
Etheridge, R. (1889). The general zoology of Lord Howe Island. Australian Museum Memoirs. 2: 3-42.
Fullagar, P.J., McKean, J.L. & Van Tets, G.F. 1975. Report on the Birds, appendix F. pp. 55-72 in Recher, H.F. & Clark, S.S. (eds). Environmental Survey of Lord Howe Island A report to the Lord Howe Island Board. Sydney : Australian Museum viii 86 pp.
Garnett, Stephen. (1992). Threatened and Extinct Birds of Australia. RAOU Report Number 82. Moonee Ponds, Australia: Royal Australasian Ornithologists' Union and Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service. 212 pp.
Garnett, S. T. and Crowley, G. M. (2000). The Action Plan for Australian Birds 2000. Canberra, ACT: Environment Australia & Birds Australia.
Hindwood, Keith A. (1940). The birds of Lord Howe Island. Emu 40: 1-86.
Hull, Arthur Francis Basset. (1909). The birds of Lord Howe and Norfolk Islands. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 34: 636-693, pls. l-liv. [p. 674]
Hutton, Ian. (1991). Birds of Lord Howe Island: Past and Present. Coffs Harbour Plaza, N.S.W.: Self Published. 154 pp.
Knox, Alan G. and Walters, Michael P. (1994). Extinct and endangered birds in the collections of The Natural History Museum. British Ornithologists' Club Occasional Publications 1: 1-292. [p. 170]
König C, Weick F, Becking JH (1999) Owls. A guide to the owls of the world. Pica Press.
Longmore, N. W. (1991). Type specimens of birds in the Australian Museum. Technical Report of the Australian Museum 4: 1-42.
Mathews, Gregory Macalister. (1928). The Birds of Norfolk & Lord Howe Islands and the Australasian South Polar Quadrant: with additions to "birds of Australia". London: H.F. & G. Witherby. [p. 21, pl. 13]
Matthews, Thomas J. et al. (2022). Threatened and extinct island endemic birds of the world: Distribution, threats and functional diversity. Journal of Biogeography. https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.14474
McAllan, Ian A. W., Curtis, Brian R., Hutton, Ian and Cooper, Richard M. (2004). The Birds of Lord Howe Island Group: A Review of Records. Australian Field Ornithology 21(Supplement): 1-82.
McKean, J. L. and Hindwood, Keith A. (1965). Additional notes on the birds of Lord Howe Island. Emu. 64: 79-97.
Mees, G. F. (1964). A revision of the Australian Owls (Striigdae and Tytonidae). Zoologische Verhandelingen. 65: 1-62.
Recher, H. F. (1974a). Colonisation and extinction: the birds of Lord Howe Island. Australian Natural History 18(2): 64-69.
Recher, H. F., ed. (1974b). Environmental Survey of Lord Howe Island: A Report to the Lord Howe Island Board. Sydney, NSW: Australian Museum.
Recher, H. F. and S.S. Clark (1974). A biological survey of Lord Howe Island with recommendations for the conservation of the island's wildlife. Biological Conservation. 6: 263-273.
Schodde, R. & I.J. Mason (1980). Nocturnal Birds of Australia. Melbourne: Lansdowne.
Schodde, R. and Mason, I. J. 1997. Aves (Columbidae to Coraciidae). Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Vol. 37.2. W. W. K. Houston and A. Wells (eds). CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne.
Schodde, R., P. Fullagar & N. Hermes (1983). A review of Norfolk Island birds: past and present. Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service Special Publication. 8.
Tsang, Leah R. et al. (2022). A recent specimen of a Tasmanian Boobook Ninox leucopsis recovered on Lord Howe Island. Australian Field Ornithology 39: 143-157. http://dx.doi.org/10.20938/afo39143157
Weick, Friedhelm. (2006). Owls (Strigiformes): Annotated and Illustrated Checklist. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
Woinarski, John C. Z., Legge, Sarah M. and Garnett, Stephen T. (2024). Extinct Australian birds: numbers, characteristics, lessons and prospects. Emu 124(1): 8-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/01584197.2023.2240345