Mascarene Parrot (Mascarinus mascarin)
Posted on 31 December, 1834 in Extinct
Year Last Seen:
1834
Comments:
This species was known from the island of Réunion, but it has gone Extinct as a result of hunting pressure. The last record of wild birds dates from 1775, and none were observed on a visit in 1804.
Habitat:
Nothing is known, although it is likely to have inhabited forest where it fed on fruits and nuts.
Causes:
It is likely to have been hunted to extinction.
Distribution:
Mascarinus mascarin was described by numerous early travellers to Réunion (to France), with several captive birds shipped to France in the late 18th century. The last accounts of wild birds were from the 1770s, and birds were not mentioned by Bory writing in 1804, so the species may well have been extinct in the wild by then. The captive birds in Paris had also died by this time but a single bird survived in the King of Bavaria's menagerie until at least 1834 (Cheke 1987). Two specimens survive today (Forshaw and Cooper 1989).
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