South Island Snipe (Coenocorypha iredalei)

Year Last Seen:

1964

Comments:

This species has been extirpated from its historic range by introduced mammalian predators; it was last recorded in 1964 and is classified as Extinct.

Habitat:

The species is assumed to have had similar habits to the extant C. aucklandica, and thought to have possessed a similar nocturnal aerial display (Miskelly 1999).

Causes:

Many local extinctions have occurred in the past, probably caused by various introductions of Pacific rat Rattus exulans, cats, pigs and Weka Gallirallus australis (Higgins and Davies 1996). The accidental introduction of black rats Rattus rattus onto Stewart Island in 1964 presumably brought about the extinction of C. iredalei.

Distribution:

C. iredalei previously occurred on Stewart Island (New Zealand), but it is believed to have been extinct since 1964 (Szabo et al. 2012). Two individuals were found after the accidental introduction of black rats Rattus rattus onto Stewart Island in 1964. Both of these birds were taken into captivity but died soon after (Tennyson and Martinson 2006).

References:

IUCN Redbook Data