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Réunion Rail
The Réunion rail (''Dryolimnas augusti''), also known as Dubois' wood-rail, is an extinct rail species which was endemic to the Mascarene island of Réunion. The scientific name commemorates French poet Auguste de Villèle (1858-1943) whose interest in the history of Réunion and hospitality made it possible for numerous naturalists to discover and explore the caves of Réunion. The subfossil remains of the Réunion rail were unearthed in 1996 in the Caverne de la Tortue on Réunion and scientifically described in 1999. The material includes two complete tarso-metatarsi, five vertebrae, one sacrum, one coracoid, two humeri, one ulna, three femora, ten pedal phalanxes and one fragment of the left mandibula. The appearance of the bones identifies the Réunion rail as a close relative of the white-throated rail and the Aldabra rail. The large and stout tarsometatarsus shows that it might have been the largest known taxon within the genus ''Dryolimnas''. Historically there is o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rallidae
The rails, or Rallidae, are a large cosmopolitan family of small- to medium-sized, ground-living birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity and includes the crakes, coots, and gallinules. Many species are associated with wetlands, although the family is found in every terrestrial habitat except dry deserts, polar regions, and alpine areas above the snow line. Members of the Rallidae occur on every continent except Antarctica. Numerous island species are known. The most common rail habitats are marshland and dense forest. They are especially fond of dense vegetation.Horsfall & Robinson (2003): pp. 206–207 Name "Rail" is the anglicized respelling of the French ''râle'', from Old French ''rasle''. It is named from its harsh cry, in Vulgar Latin *''rascula'', from Latin ''rādere'' ("to scrape"). Morphology The rails are a family of small to medium-sized, ground-living birds. They vary in length from and in weight from . Some species have long necks and in many ca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endemism
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, the Cape sugarbird is found exclusively in southwestern South Africa and is therefore said to be ''endemic'' to that particular part of the world. An endemic species can be also be referred to as an ''endemism'' or in scientific literature as an ''endemite''. For example '' Cytisus aeolicus'' is an endemite of the Italian flora. '' Adzharia renschi'' was once believed to be an endemite of the Caucasus, but it was later discovered to be a non-indigenous species from South America belonging to a different genus. The extreme opposite of an endemic species is one with a cosmopolitan distribution, having a global or widespread range. A rare alternative term for a species that is endemic is "precinctive", which applies to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mascarenes
The Mascarene Islands (, ) or Mascarenes or Mascarenhas Archipelago is a group of islands in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar consisting of the islands belonging to the Republic of Mauritius as well as the French department of Réunion. Their name derives from the Portuguese navigator Pedro Mascarenhas, who first visited them in April 1512. The islands share a common geologic origin in the volcanism of the Réunion hotspot beneath the Mascarene Plateau and form a distinct ecoregion with a unique flora and fauna. Geography The archipelago comprises three large islands, Mauritius, Réunion, and Rodrigues, plus a number of volcanic remnants in the tropics of the southwestern Indian Ocean, generally between 700 and 1500 kilometres east of Madagascar. The terrain includes a variety of reefs, atolls, and small islands. They present various topographical and edaphic regions. On the largest islands these gave rise to unusual biodiversity. The climate is oceanic and tropical. Maurit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Réunion
Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island of Madagascar and southwest of the island of Mauritius. , it had a population of 868,846. Like the other four overseas departments, Réunion also holds the status of a region of France, and is an integral part of the French Republic. Réunion is an outermost region of the European Union and is part of the eurozone. Réunion and the fellow French overseas department of Mayotte are the only eurozone regions located in the Southern Hemisphere. As in the rest of France, the official language of Réunion is French. In addition, a majority of the region's population speaks Réunion Creole. Toponymy When France took possession of the island in the seventeenth century, it was named Bourbon, after the dynasty that then ruled France. To break ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Auguste De Villèle
Auguste may refer to: People Surname * Arsène Auguste (born 1951), Haitian footballer * Donna Auguste (born 1958), African-American businesswoman * Georges Auguste (born 1933), Haitian painter * Henri Auguste (1759–1816), Parisian gold and silversmith * Joyce Auguste, Saint Lucian musician * Jules Robert Auguste (1789–1850), French painter * Tancrède Auguste (1856–1913), President of Haiti (1912–13) Given name * Auguste, Baron Lambermont (1819–1905), Belgian statesman * Auguste, Duke of Leuchtenberg (1810–1835), prince consort of Maria II of Portugal * Auguste, comte de La Ferronays (1777–1842), French Minister of Foreign Affairs * Auguste Clot (1858–1936), French art printer * Auguste Dick (1910–1993), Austrian historian of mathematics * Georges Auguste Escoffier (1846–1935), French chef, restaurateur and culinary writer * Auguste Metz (1812–1854), Luxembourgian entrepreneur * Auguste Léopold Protet (1808–1862), French Navy admiral * Auguste Pi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dryolimnas
The genus ''Dryolimnas'' comprises birds in the rail family. The Réunion rail, a member of this genus, became extinct in the 17th century. The white-throated rail of Aldabra is the last surviving flightless bird Flightless birds are birds that through evolution lost the ability to fly. There are over 60 extant species, including the well known ratites (ostriches, emu, cassowaries, rheas, and kiwi) and penguins. The smallest flightless bird is the ... in the western Indian Ocean. They are mostly found on Malabar Island, but can also be found on Polymnieli Island and other islands. Though much larger, the skeletons of these rails show similarities to the rails of the genus '' Lewinia''. Therefore, the two genera were lumped at times. This has been supported by DNA evidence, which finds strong support for a clade containing '' Crex'', ''Lewinina'', ''Dryolimnas'', and the Snoring rail. Species * White-throated rail or Cuvier's rail, ''Dryolimnas cuvieri'' **Alda ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sieur Dubois
Sieur Dubois () or Sieur D. B. was a French traveller who reached the islands of Madagascar and Réunion at the time of early colonization by France. He wrote a book in French, published in 1674, about his journeys and the wildlife he saw including details of several species of birds endemic to Réunion that have since become extinct, such as the Réunion ibis, Réunion swamphen, and Réunion rail.Dubois (1674) Captain Samuel Pasfield Oliver Samuel Pasfield Oliver (1838–1907) was an English artillery officer, geographer and antiquary. Life Born at Bovinger, Essex, on 30 October 1838, he was the eldest and only surviving son of William Macjanley Oliver, rector of Bovinger, by his wi ... translated and edited the original French version into an English version, which was published in 1897.Dubois (translated and edited by Oliver) (1897). Editor's preface References Cited texts * * French explorers French travel writers French naturalists 17th-century pseudonymous writers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Réunion Swamphen
The Réunion swamphen (''Porphyrio caerulescens''), also known as the Réunion gallinule or ' (French for "blue bird"), is a hypothetical extinct species of rail that was endemic to the Mascarene island of Réunion. While only known from 17th- and 18th-century accounts by visitors to the island, it was scientifically named in 1848, based on the 1674 account by Sieur Dubois. A considerable literature was subsequently devoted to its possible affinities, with current researchers agreeing it was derived from the swamphen genus ''Porphyrio''. It has been considered mysterious and enigmatic due to the lack of any physical evidence of its existence. This bird was described as entirely blue in plumage with a red beak and legs. It was said to be the size of a Réunion ibis or chicken, which could mean in length, and it may have been similar to the takahe. While easily hunted, it was a fast runner and able to fly, though it did so reluctantly. It may have fed on plant matter and inv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Réunion Ibis
The Réunion ibis or Réunion sacred ibis (''Threskiornis solitarius'') is an extinct species of ibis that was endemic to the volcanic island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean. The first subfossil remains were found in 1974, and the ibis was first scientifically described in 1987. Its closest relatives are the Malagasy sacred ibis, the African sacred ibis, and the straw-necked ibis. Travellers' accounts from the 17th and 18th centuries described a white bird on Réunion that flew with difficulty and preferred solitude, which was subsequently referred to as the "Réunion solitaire". In the mid 19th century, the old travellers' accounts were incorrectly assumed to refer to white relatives of the dodo, due to one account specifically mentioning dodos on the island, and because 17th-century paintings of white dodos had recently surfaced. However, no fossils referable to dodo-like birds were ever found on Réunion, and it was later questioned whether the paintings had anything to do ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Common Moorhen
The common moorhen (''Gallinula chloropus''), also known as the waterhen or swamp chicken, is a bird species in the rail family (Rallidae). It is distributed across many parts of the Old World. The common moorhen lives around well-vegetated marshes, ponds, canals and other wetlands. The species is not found in the polar regions or many tropical rainforests. Elsewhere it is likely the most common rail species, except for the Eurasian coot in some regions. The closely related common gallinule of the New World has been recognized as a separate species by most authorities, starting with the American Ornithologists' Union and the International Ornithological Committee in 2011. Name The name ''mor-hen'' has been recorded in English since the 13th century. The word ''moor'' here is an old sense meaning ''marsh''; the species is not usually found in moorland. An older name, common waterhen, is more descriptive of the bird's habitat. A "watercock" is not a male "waterhen" but the rail ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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