The Raiatea parakeet or Society parakeet (''Cyanoramphus ulietanus''), also known as the Society kakariki or brown-headed parakeet, is an extinct

parakeet A parakeet is any one of many small to medium-sized species of parrot, in multiple genera, that generally has long tail feathers. Etymology and naming The name ''parakeet'' is derived from the French wor''perroquet'' which is reflected in ...

of the genus ''

Cyanoramphus ''Cyanoramphus'' is a genus of parakeets native to New Zealand and islands of the southern Pacific Ocean. The New Zealand forms are often referred to as kākāriki. They are small to medium-sized parakeets with long tails and predominantly gree ...

''.

Description

The Raiatea parakeet averaged 25 cm (9.75 to 10 inches) in length. Its head was chocolate brown, paler on the neck, rump, and wings. The bill showed a pale bluish grey hue and had a black tip. The lower back and tail coverts exhibited a rufous brown colouring. The underwing coverts and outer webs to flight feathers were greyish blue. The breast, abdomen, and undertail coverts were olive yellow. The mid-rectrices were olive brown and outer rectrices grey. The irises were orange red in adults and brown in juveniles. The feet were greyish brown. Males and females were not

sexually dimorphic Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...

Distribution and habitat

The Raiatea parakeet was endemic to

Raiatea Raiatea or Ra'iatea ( Tahitian: ''Ra‘iātea'') is the second largest of the Society Islands, after Tahiti, in French Polynesia. The island is widely regarded as the "centre" of the eastern islands in ancient Polynesia and it is likely that the ...

, the second largest island of the

Society Islands The Society Islands (french: Îles de la Société, officially ''Archipel de la Société;'' ty, Tōtaiete mā) are an archipelago located in the South Pacific Ocean. Politically, they are part of French Polynesia, an overseas country of the ...

. It was probably a forest species, as this was the native habitat on this island.

Status

It is presumed to have gone extinct shortly after its discovery in 1773. The causes of its decline were likely habitat loss due to forest clearing, hunting, and invasive species. There are only two museum specimens known to exist. The date of their origin was discussed, with

Erwin Stresemann Erwin Friedrich Theodor Stresemann (22 November 1889, in Dresden – 20 November 1972, in East Berlin) was a German naturalist and ornithologist. Stresemann was an ornithologist of extensive breadth who compiled one of the first and most compr ...

(1950) and James Greenway (1958) suggesting 1773 or 1774. However, in 1979 the ornithologist David G. Medway from New Zealand claimed that the two specimens were taken in November 1777 during the third circumnavigation by James Cook. He based the claim on the travel diary entries by Joseph Banks. The specimens are in the

Natural History Museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleontology, climatology, and more. ...

in London and in the

Naturhistorisches Museum The Natural History Museum Vienna (german: Naturhistorisches Museum Wien) is a large natural history museum located in Vienna, Austria. It is one of the most important natural history museums worldwide. The NHM Vienna is one of the largest museum ...

, Vienna.

References

* Greenway, James (1967): ''Extinct and Vanishing Birds of the World'' * Day, David (1981): ''The Doomsday Book of Animals'' * Fuller, Errol (2000): ''Extinct Birds'' * Flannery, Tim & Schouten, Peter (2001): ''A Gap in Nature''

External links

Lexicon of Parrots – ''Cyanoramphus ulietanus''
(Engl.)
Description
(French) Cyanoramphus Birds described in 1789 Taxa named by Johann Friedrich Gmelin Bird extinctions since 1500 Raiatea Birds of Polynesia Extinct birds of Oceania {{parrot-stub