List of New Zealand species extinct in the Holocene

This is a list of extinct New Zealand animals.

Mammals

Apart from bats, and a new discovery of a mouse-like creature on Banks Peninsula, New Zealand had no land mammals until humans arrived, but there have been fossil marine mammals found. New Zealand now has two surviving species of bat.

• Greater Short-tailed Bat, Mystacina robusta (1965)
• Waipatia maerewhenua (Dolphin, Oligocene age, about 23-34 million years ago)

Birds

Extinctions since mid-19th century European settlement

• Auckland Islands Merganser, Mergus australis
• Chatham Island Rail, Cabalus modestus
• Dieffenbach's Rail, Gallirallus dieffenbachii
• Stewart Island Snipe, Coenocorypha aucklandica iredalei
• Little Barrier Snipe, Coenocorypha aucklandica barrierensis
• New Zealand Quail, Coturnix novaezelandidae
• North Island Takahe, Porphyrio mantelli
• South Island Kokako, Callaeas cinerea cinerea (Believed extinct from the 1960s, but recent reports suggest a small population may still survive.)
• Huia, Heteralocha acutirostris
• South Island Piopio, Turnagra capensis
• North Island Piopio, Turnagra tanagra
• Chatham Island Bellbird, Anthornis melanocephala
• New Zealand Little Bittern, Ixobrychus novaezelandiae
• Stephens Island Wren, Traversia lyalii
• Bush Wren, Xenicus longipes
  • South Island Bush Wren, Xenicus longipes longipes
  • North Island Bush Wren, Xenicus longipes stokesi
  • Stewart Island Bush Wren, Xenicus longipes variabilis
• Chatham Island Fernbird, Bowdleria rufescens
• Laughing Owl, Sceloglaux albifacies

Extinctions since 14th century Māori settlement

• North Island Adzebill, Aptornis otidiformis
• South Island Adzebill, Aptornis defossor
• Eyles' Harrier, Circus eylesi
• Haast's Eagle, Harpagornis moorei
• Giant Chatham Island Rail or Hawkins' Rail, Diaphorapteryx hawkinsi
• Hodgen's Waterhen or Hodgen's Rail, Gallinula hodgenorum
• Snipe-rail, Capellirallus karamu
• Chatham Island Coot, Fulica chathamensis
• New Zealand Coot, Fulica prisca
• Giant Chatham Island Snipe, Coenocorypha chathamica
• New Zealand Owlet-nightjar, Aegotheles novaezealandiae
• Chatham Islands Raven, Corvus moriorum
• New Zealand Raven, Corvus antipodum
  • North Island Raven, Corvus antipodum antipodum
  • South Island Raven, Corvus antipodum pycrafti
• New Zealand Musk Duck or De Lautour's Duck, Biziura delautouri
• Chatham Island Duck, Pachyanas chathamica
• New Zealand Pink-eared Duck or Scarlett's Duck, Malacorhynchus scarletti
• Finsch's Duck, Chenonetta finschi
• North Island Goose, Cnemiornis gracilis
• South Island Goose, Cnemiornis calcitrans
• New Zealand Swan, Cygnus atratus sumnerensis
• Moa
  • Bush Moa, Anomalopteryx didiformis
  • Upland Moa, Megalapteryx didinus
  • Benham's Megalapteryx, Megalapteryx benhami
  • Heavy-footed Moa, Pachyornis elephantopus
  • Crested Moa, Pachyornis australis
  • Mappin's Moa, Pachyornis mappini
  • Stout-legged Moa, Euryapteryx geranoides
  • Coastal Moa, Euryapteryx curtus
  • Eastern Moa, Emeus crassus
  • North Island Giant Moa, Dinornis novaezealandiae
  • Giant Moa, Dinornis robustus

Extinctions before human settlement

• Albatross (unnamed), Manu antiquus
• Narrow-flippered Penguin, Palaeeudyptes antarcticus
• Marples' Penguin, Palaeeudyptes marplesi
• New Zealand Giant Penguin, Pachydyptes ponderosus
• Wide-flippered Penguin, Platydyptes novaezealandiae
• Amies' Penguin, Platydyptes amiesi
• Lowe's Penguin, Archaeospheniscus lowei
• Lopdell's Penguin, Archaeospheniscus lopdelli
• Duntroon Penguin, Duntroonornis parvus
• Oliver's Penguin, Korora oliveri
• Harris' Penguin, Marplesornis novaezealandiae
• Moisley's Penguin, Tereingaornis moisleyi
• Ridgen's Penguin, Aptenodytes ridgeni
• Tyree's Penguin, Pygoscelis tyreei
• Miocene False-toothed Pelican, Pelagornis miocaenus
• Stirton's False-toothed Pelican, Pseudodontornis stirtoni
• Scarlett's Shearwater, Puffinus spelaeus (600 BP)
• Grant-Mackie's Wren, Pachyplichas jagmi
• Yaldwyn's Wren or Stout-legged Wren, Pachyplichas yaldwyni
• Long-billed Wren, Dendroscansor decurvirostris

Reptiles

• Kawekaweau, Hoplodactylus delcourti (1870)
• Narrow-bodied Skink, Oligosoma gracilicorpus
• Northland Skink, Cyclodina northlandi (Late Holocene)

Plesiosaurs and other fossil marine reptiles, such as mosasaurs, have been known from New Zealand.

• Mauisaurus, Mauisaurus haasti (Late Cretaceous, 65 million years ago)
• New Zealand Plesiosaur, Kaiwhekea katiki (Late Cretaceous, 69-70 million years ago)
• Waipara mosasaur, Prognathodon waiparaensis (Late Cretaceous, 70 million years ago)

Amphibians

• Aurora frog, Leiopelma auroraensis
• Markham's frog, Leiopelma markhami
• Waitomo frog, Leiopelma waitomoensis
• Stereospondyl - [1]

Fish

• New Zealand grayling, Prototroctes oxyrhynchus (1930s)
• New Zealand white shark, Carcharodon angustidens (Oligocene, 26 M years)

Insects

• Karocolens tuberculatus
• Mecodema punctellum

Molluscs

• Placostylus ambagiosus gardneri Land snail, Recent
• Placostylus ambagiosus hinemoa Land snail, Recent
• Placostylus ambagiosus lesleyae Land snail, Recent
• Placostylus ambagiosus priscus Land snail, Recent
• Placostylus ambagiosus spiritus Land snail, Recent
• Placostylus ambagiosus worthyi Land snail, Recent

Rediscovered

• New Zealand Storm-petrel, Oceanites maorianus (2003)
• South Island Takahe, Porphyrio hochstetteri (1948)

See also

• List of extinct animals
• Extinct birds (1500 - present)
• Later Quaternary Prehistoric Birds

External links

• The Extinction Website
• IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
• TerraNature - New Zealand Ecology - Native birds list
• TerraNature pages on New Zealand extinct birds

References

• Bell, B.D. 1994. A review of the status of New Zealand Leiopelma species (Anura: Leiopelmatidae), including a summary of demographic studies in Coromandel and on Maud Island. New Zealand Journal of Zoology, Vol. 21: 341-349.
• Bunce, M., Worthy, T.H., Ford, T., Hoppitt, W., Willerslev, E., Drummond A., and Cooper, A. 2003. Extreme reversed sexual size dimorphism in the extinct New Zealand moa Dinornis. Nature, 425:172-175.
• Cooper, A., Lalueza-Fox, C., Anderson, C., Rambaut, A., Austin, J., and Ward, R. 2001. Complete mitochondrial genome sequences of two extinct moas clarify ratite evolution. Nature 409:704-707.
• Day, D., 1981, The Doomsday Book of Animals, Ebury Press, London.
• Gill, B.; Martinson, P., (1991) New Zealand’s Extinct Birds, Random Century New Zealand Ltd.
• Gill, B. J. 2003. Osteometry and systematics of the extinct New Zealand ravens (Aves: Corvidae: Corvus). Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 1: 43-58.
• Flannery, T., and Schouten, P., 2001, A Gap in Nature: Discovering the World's Extinct Animals, William Heinemann, London. ISBN 0-434-00819-2 (UK edition).
• Fuller, E., 2001, Extinct Birds, Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-253-34034-9 (UK Edition).
• Holdaway, Richard N., Worthy, Trevor H. and Tennyson, Alan J. D. 2001. A working list of breeding bird species of the New Zealand region at first human contact, New Zealand Journal of Zoology, 28:119-187.
• Huynen, L., Millar, C.D., Scofield, R.P., and Lambert, D.M. 2003. Nuclear DNA sequences detect species limits in ancient moa. Nature, 425:175-178.
• Perkins, S. 2003. Three Species No Moa? Fossil DNA analysis yields surprise. Science News, 164:84.
• Philip R. Millener & T. H. Worthy (1991). "Contribution to New Zealand's late Quaternary avifauna. II: Dendroscansor decurvirostris, a new genus and species of wren (Aves: Acantisittidae)." Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand. 21, 2: 179-200.
• Philip R. Millener (1988). "Contributions to New Zealand's late Quaternary avifauna. I: Pachyplichas, a new genus of wren (Aves: Acanthisittidae), with two new species." Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand. 18:383-406
• Wilson, K-J, (2004) Flight of the Huia, Canterbury University Press, Christchurch. ISBN 0-908812-52-3
• World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1996. Hoplodactylus delcourti. In: IUCN 2004. 2004 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 02 March 2006.
• World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1996. Karocolens tuberculatus. In: IUCN 2004. 2004 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 02 March 2006.
• World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1996. Mecodema punctellum. In: IUCN 2004. 2004 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 02 March 2006.
• Worthy, T.H. 1998. The Quaternary fossil avifauna of Southland, South Island, New Zealand. Journal of The Royal Society of New Zealand. Volume 28, Number 4, pp 537-589.
• Worthy, T.H., Holdaway R.N., 2002, The lost world of the Moa: Prehistoric Life of New Zealand, Indiana University Press, Bloomington. ISBN 0-253-34034-9.