Ryūkyū-Reads
| Ryūkyū-Reads | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Todiramphus cinnamominus miyakoensis | ||||||||||||
| ( Kuroda , 1919) |
The Ryūkyū Liest ( Todiramphus cinnamominus miyakoensis ) is an extinct subspecies of the cinnamon head ( Todiramphus cinnamominus ), but the systematic position of this taxon is disputed. It was discovered in 1887 on Miyako-jima in the Ryūkyū Islands .
features
The Ryūkyū-Liest is known only from a single, damaged specimen, which is in the Zoological Museum of the Science College in Tokyo. It has a length of 24 cm. The reins are black. There is a small white spot above the eyes. A narrow, greenish blue stripe runs under the eyes, which widens towards the sides of the neck. The rest of the head and neck are cinnamon colored. The upper back and shoulders are dark greenish blue. The lower back and the upper tail-coverts are cobalt blue. The wings of the hand are brownish black. The elytra and tail are ultramarine blue with a greenish tinge. The color on the chest is a little darker. The color of the iris is unknown. The feet are dark red, the claws brown. The Ryūkyū-Liest differs from the Zimtkopfliest by the lack of a black neck band and the red (not black) legs and feet.
die out
The only known specimen was shot on February 5, 1887 by a bird collector named Y. Tashiro. On subsequent expeditions, including Hyojiri Orii, the Ryūkyū-Liest could not be rediscovered. Possible causes of extinction are extensive deforestation and the drainage of the wetlands.
Taxonomy
There have often been controversial discussions about the validity of this taxon. Described in 1919 by Nagamichi Kuroda as an independent species Halcyon miyakoensis , ornithologists Joseph Michael Forshaw (1985) and Mark Brazil (2009) pointed out that Miyako-jima is a highly unlikely breeding site for kingfishers. They suspect that the specimen found must be a stray visitor, which in the best case represents a subspecies of the cinnamon head. The horn coat of the beak is missing, so the color of the beak can no longer be determined. James Cowan Greenway noticed in 1967 that the supposed difference in length of the hand wings in relation to the arm wings is almost certainly due to a preparation error. On the other hand, the Ryūkyū- Liest shows strong similarities with the Guam subspecies of the cinnamon head Todiramphus cinnamomimus cinnamomimus .
Individual evidence
literature
- Dieter Luther: The extinct birds of the world . 4th edition (Die neue Brehm-Bücherei 424). Westarp Sciences, Magdeburg; Spectrum, Heidelberg 1996. ISBN 3-89432-213-6 , p. 125
- David Day: The Doomsday Book of Animals. Ebury Press, London 1981. ISBN 0670279870 , p. 144
- James Greenway: Extinct and Vanishing Birds of the World. Dover Publications Inc. New York 1967. ISBN 0-486-21869-4 , p. 355
- Michael Walters & Julian Pender Hume: Extinct Birds . Poiser Monographes (A & C Black), 2012. ISBN 978-140-815-725-1 , pp. 340-341.
- Joseph M. Forshaw & William Thomas Cooper : Kingfishers and related birds , Melbourne: Lansdowne, 1985. ISBN 978-070-181-052-8
- Mark Brazil: Birds of East Asia (Helm Field Guides), Christopher Helm Ornithology, 2009. ISBN 978-071-367-040-0 , p. 500