Hawkins' Rail
Encyclopedia
Hawkins' Rail or Giant Chatham Island Rail, Diaphorapteryx hawkinsi, was a flightless extinct bird endemic
to the Chatham Islands
east of New Zealand
. It is known to have existed only on the main islands of Chatham Island and Pitt Island. It is largely known from skeletal
remains found in the kitchen midden
s of the original Polynesian
inhabitants, the Moriori
.
The bird was approximately 16 inches tall and weighed about 4.5 pounds (2 kg) and is thought to have been primarily an insectivore
.
It was long thought that the Hawkins' Rail was extinct prior to European discovery, however recent evidence suggests that the bird may have become extinct much later. An 1895 letter belonging to financier/zoologist Lord Lionel Walter Rothschild describes the appearance, behaviour, and Moriori hunting method concerning the species.
A taxidermed specimen is in the collection of Te Papa Museum in Wellington, New Zealand.
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
to the Chatham Islands
Chatham Islands
The Chatham Islands are an archipelago and New Zealand territory in the Pacific Ocean consisting of about ten islands within a radius, the largest of which are Chatham Island and Pitt Island. Their name in the indigenous language, Moriori, means Misty Sun...
east of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. It is known to have existed only on the main islands of Chatham Island and Pitt Island. It is largely known from skeletal
Skeleton
The skeleton is the body part that forms the supporting structure of an organism. There are two different skeletal types: the exoskeleton, which is the stable outer shell of an organism, and the endoskeleton, which forms the support structure inside the body.In a figurative sense, skeleton can...
remains found in the kitchen midden
Midden
A midden, is an old dump for domestic waste which may consist of animal bone, human excrement, botanical material, vermin, shells, sherds, lithics , and other artifacts and ecofacts associated with past human occupation...
s of the original Polynesian
Polynesians
The Polynesian peoples is a grouping of various ethnic groups that speak Polynesian languages, a branch of the Oceanic languages within the Austronesian languages, and inhabit Polynesia. They number approximately 1,500,000 people...
inhabitants, the Moriori
Moriori
Moriori are the indigenous people of the Chatham Islands , east of the New Zealand archipelago in the Pacific Ocean...
.
The bird was approximately 16 inches tall and weighed about 4.5 pounds (2 kg) and is thought to have been primarily an insectivore
Insectivore
An insectivore is a type of carnivore with a diet that consists chiefly of insects and similar small creatures. An alternate term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of eating insects....
.
It was long thought that the Hawkins' Rail was extinct prior to European discovery, however recent evidence suggests that the bird may have become extinct much later. An 1895 letter belonging to financier/zoologist Lord Lionel Walter Rothschild describes the appearance, behaviour, and Moriori hunting method concerning the species.
A taxidermed specimen is in the collection of Te Papa Museum in Wellington, New Zealand.