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The species Stephens Island Wren is extinct. |
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Alternative name: Lyall's Wren; Lyall's Rockwren
- Traversia lyalli
Xenicus lyalli
Identification
Extinct. Mottled dark-olive appearance and yellow-green tinge to the throat and breast.
Distribution
Stephens Island, New Zealand.
The species was discovered 1894 on Stephens Island, when the lighthouse keeper's cat brought some of the birds. The small population was wiped out in less than a year and so this species became famous for getting extirpated by a single domestic cat. Later research showed that the species was once found on the main islands where it was probably extirpated by Polynesian Rats that arrived in New Zealand with the Maori.
Taxonomy
It was described as a distinct genus, Traversia, but usually it is considered to be part of the Xenicus "wrens", which are not wrens at all, but a similar-looking New Zealand lineage of primitive passerines, better referred to as Acanthisittids.
Habitat
Found on a small rocky island. The original habitat on the main islands is not known.
Behaviour
Flightless and probably nocturnal.
The diet included insects.
They made their nests in holes or under rocks.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2021. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2021. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Stephens Island Wren. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 17 January 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Stephens_Island_Wren
