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The species Kermadec Megapode is extinct. |
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- Megapodius sp
Identification
Only known by a 19th-century report by a former settler from Raoul Island.
Distribution
Raoul Island, Kermadec Islands
Taxonomy
Might be the same species as the Niaufoou Scrubfowl (Megapodius pritchardii) and might have been introduced by transient Polynesians.
Habitat
Behaviour
Extinction
It has been suggested that the entire population of the Kermadec Megapode was exterminated by a volcanic eruption in 1876. Due to the fact the many land birds have survived during the eruption it seems more likely that overhunting and alien species like cats and pigs have contributed to the megapode's demise.
References
A. Tennyson & P. Martinson: Extinct birds of New Zealand. Te Papa Press, 2006, ISBN 0-909010-21-8
