#852: Xerces Blue

The Xerces Blue was a member of the gossamer-winged butterfly Family and endemic to the coastal sand dunes of San Francisco. Here she suffered due to urban development, her habitat disappearing and taking her with it. It is thought that introduced ant species may have contributed. Gossamer-winged butterfly rely on ants in the early stages of larval development. The larvae release a sweet-tasting honeydew which the ants find attractive. They then tend for the caterpillar and are rewarded with the honeydew. Introduced ants may have displaced the naturally occurring ants but not replaced them in the juvenile-care stage.

You can colour the butterfly if you like - the colour is in the name :)

#818: Warrah

The Warrah, or Falklands Island Fox,  is something of an enigma to science. She was the only land mammal endemic to the Falkland Islands. DNA analysis of the few remaining museum specimens have shown her closest relative to be the maned wolf of South America. Recent theories suggest that her ancestors may have made her way to the isolated islands via an ice bridge.  After that, she adapted to survive on the rugged terrain, feeding on nesting sea birds and penguins. She showed little fear of people, and hunters would lure herwith fresh meat, felling her with a club or knife. With no forests or other such retreats on the islands, the numbers fell into rapid decline. By 1880, her species was extinct.

#756: Thylacine

The Thylacine was a large carnivorous marsupial, named the Tasmanian Tiger for his striped hide. He is an example of convergent evolution - being a dog-like predator related to the Tasmanian Devil and the Quoll. Unlike most marsupials, both male and female had a pouch: the male's acting to protect his external reproductive organs in his thickly forested home. He had a very large gape, capable of opening his jaws to 120 degree angle.  Already extirpated from the mainland due to competition with the introduced Dingo (as well as disease), his last refuge was the island of Tasmania. Early settlers decided that he posed a threat to their lifestock, and set about diligently eliminating the species.  The last wild speciman was shot in 1930, and the last captive died in 1936.
 
There are a surprisingly large number of unconfirmed Thylacine sightings, both in Tasmania and south-east Australia. Thylacine can be distinguished from a dog by his long, stiff tail which is held more akin to that of a kangaroo's, and an awkward gait (described by one maybe-sighter as "resembling bad CGI"). I know I am not alone in hoping that there are still some of this strange carnivorous kangaroo-like creature roaming the wooded areas of Australia. And, indeed, would dearly love to have my own own unconfirmed sighting to add to the list. Maybe next year, when we go to Tasmania...
http://www.thylacineresearchunit.org/sightingreports.htm

#725: Steller's Sea Cow

Steller's Sea Cow was a large member of the Dugong Family, measuring up to 9m in length. Slow-moving and docile, she fed on kelp. Her lips were large and flexible, used to grip the vegetation. Instead of teeth, she had an array of long bristles with which to tear the kelp, and bony ridges along her jawline, which ground it to a pulp. With her large size and passive nature, Steller's Sea Cow easily attracted the attentions of sailors, sealers and fur traders. In 1768, 27 years after her being described (and named) by the European naturalist, Georg Wilhelm Steller, she was extinct.

#618: Quagga

The Quagga was a subspecies of plains zebra. He was characterised by his bi-cokloured body, with the forequaters being striped and the hindquarters a solid brown. His range was the lowest tip of South Africa, where he favoured open grasslands. When the Dutch colonised South Africa, he became a target of the hunters for his meat and his skin. Already occuring across a fairly limited range, he would also have competed with introduced livestock for food. By the 1850s, numbers had declined drastically and the last wild population was eliminated in the late1870s, with the last wild individual dying in 1878.

However, that does not necessarily mean the end for this unique equine. DNA from skins has been analysed and comparisons made to the still extant Burchell's zebra and in 1987, selective breeding of these began. Whilst it is impossible to recreate the Quagga exactly as it was, it is possible that a very similar zebra will once again roam the grasslands of South Africa.

Creature Feature #572: Passenger Pigeon

Once there were a billion passenger pigeons
So many flew by, they darkened the sky
But they were clubbed and shot
Netted, Gassed, and Burned
Until there was nothing left
But vines of empty nests
I can't believe how easily
A billion birds can disappear                                 - Handsome Family "Passenger Pigeons

The Passenger Pigeons story is as tragic as that of its hapless, flightless relative, the Dodo.
It began as a success story - the most abundant bird in North America, accounting for more than 25% of the total bird population across the continent. Yet, within 50 years, the entire population consisted of one bird, Martha, in the Cincinnati Zoo. She died on September 1, 1914 and with her came extinction. The Passenger Pigeon was an extremely social bird, travelling in vast flocks and leading a nomadic, migratory existence. His preferred diet was the seeds of beech and oak trees, and during the mast seeding seasons, the population boomed. Deforestation likely contributed to their abrupt decline. They were also massacred: adults shot in flight, fledglings killed on the nest, nesting sites destroyed. Such a full-scale slaughter caused a dramatic decline in the population.


So saying, there is still some hope for the Passenger Pigeon, it is considered a candidate for de-extinction/cloning and there are still a few folks in various parts of the eastern US that claim to have seen this reasonably large, pink bellied pigeon. So, who knows, she might make a comeback yet.

Creature Feature #567: Paradise Parrot

The Paradise Parrot of Queensland-New South Wales, Australia, was once relatively common within its restricted range. He lived in pairs or family groups, nesting in termite mounds and feeding almost exclusively on grass seeds. By the end of the 19th century, this colourful parrot was becoming increasingly uncommon - predation, habitat destruction and hunting are all listed as probable causes for his decline. The last confirmed sighting was seen in 1927.

Is it a parrot or a parakeet?
Whilst the Paradise Parrot is named as a "parrot", it does bear several traits in common with the birds associated with the parakeet moniker. Essentially, all parakeets ARE parrots, but not all parrots are parakeets. Parakeet is generally associated with small-to-medium sized parrots, characterised by their long tails and a generally colourful.

The most commonly associated bird with the name "parakeet" is the buderigar. And since I missed drawing this colourful critter for B, I may well have to bring him in for P.

Creature Feature #551: ʻŌʻū

The ʻŌʻū was a large, plump finch, endemic to the Hawaiian islands. He favoured a frugivorous diet, feeding predominently on the fruit of the ʻieʻie vine and the buds and blossoms of the ʻōhiʻa lehua (as pictured here). A seasonal migrant, his foraging took him up and down the mountains on the islands, and also between islands. This proved to be his undoing, as it brought him into range of the lower-altitude mosquitoes and, like many of his kin, he fell victim to avian malaria and also fowlpox. The last recorded sighting was in 1989 and although not yet proven extinct (still classified as "Critically endangered"), this unique Hawaiian bird has probably vanished forever.

Creature Feature #536: ʻōʻō

The Hawaiian ʻōʻō was a beautiful nectivorous songbird, endemic to the Hawaiian islands. There were four distinct species, occupying separate islands. The largest measured around 30 cm from head to tail. He was generally considered to be related to the Australian honey-eaters and shared a similar diet - drinking the nectar from flowers. Genetic research has since shown them to be distinctly different, and any similiarities a result of convergent evolution, where unrelated species develop similar traits to fill similar niches.

 The arrival of humans on the islands marked the beginning of the end for the ʻōʻō. Birds on Oahu and Hawai'i were hunting extensively for their yellow feathers, which were worn by nobility. Deforestation claimed their land, rats claimed their nestlings, and like many Hawaiian birds, they proved vulnerable to the introduction of bird malaria. The first to become extinct was the Oahu ʻōʻō in 1837, the Bishops ʻōʻō of Molokai following in 1904 and the Hawaiian ʻōʻō hanging on until the last confirmed sighting in 1937. The smallest, the Kaua'i ʻōʻō survived a little longer - mongoose never made it to that island - being declared extinct then rediscovered on several occasions, but surveys in 1987 found no evidence of their continued existence.

The ʻōʻō, like the huia and oh-so-many beautiful, unique birds, is an example how isolated populations can be extremely vulnerable to outside pressures, especially when they have evolved without the addition of natural land predators. Neither New Zealand nor Hawaii had any mammalian predators until humans came and brought with them the rats and mice, mongoose (Hawaii) and mustelids (New Zealand).

Creature Feature #395: Kouprey

The Kouprey is a species of wild cattle, once found throughout Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos. Alas, uncontrolled hunting led the population into sharp decline and the last living specimens were seen in 1988. It is classified as critically endangered, possibly extinct. There is no captive population. In the wild, his natural habitat is forested areas. The cows form herds, led by a dominant female, and the bulls join them during the dry season.

Creature Feature #163: Dodo

The Dodo was a large, flightless pigeon who once roamed the forests of Mauritius. His fate was sealed, alas, when sailors landed on the island in the 16th century, bringing with them rats, cats, dogs, pigs - and guns. With no natural predators, the Dodo was a fearless and curious bird, eager to investigate these new arrivals. The sailors killed the Dodo not only for their meat, but for sport. This, combined with the impact the introduced animals had on their habitat, lead to the Dodo’s demise in 1662. Its extinction was not immediately noted - indeed the bird itself was considered a hoax - but he has now become the icon of extinction and the phrase “dead as a dodo” has become cliche.

Creature Feature #43: Baiji

The Baiji lived in the longest river in China, the heavily industrialised Yangtze River. As pollution and river traffic increased, the numbers of this charming river dolphin plummeted. Nicknamed the “Goddess of the Yangtze”, a popular Chinese tale spoke of a princess who, after refusing an arranged marriage, was drowned by her family and was reincarnated as a dolphin.

From the 1970s and into the 90s, efforts were made to establish a captive population - but few were captured and even fewer survived. The longest living captive baiji was QiQi, who survived 22 years. A mate was found for him, an adult female, but she perished when her pool became flooded. QiQi died in 2002.

The Baiji was declared functionally extinct in 2006.