List of extinct New Zealand animals
Encyclopedia
Mammals
Bats, and a recently discovered extinct mouse-sized creature, are the only land mammals known to have inhabited New ZealandNew Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
until the arrival of humans. Fossil marine mammals have been found. New Zealand now has two surviving species of endemic bat.
- Greater Short-tailed Bat, Mystacina robusta (1965) (Still billed as Critically Endangered by IUCN)
- Waipatia maerewhenua (DolphinDolphinDolphins are marine mammals that are closely related to whales and porpoises. There are almost forty species of dolphin in 17 genera. They vary in size from and , up to and . They are found worldwide, mostly in the shallower seas of the continental shelves, and are carnivores, mostly eating...
, OligoceneOligoceneThe Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
age, about 23–34 million years ago) - SB mammal, thought to be neither theriaTheriaTheria is a subclass of mammals that give birth to live young without using a shelled egg, including both eutherians and metatherians . The only omitted extant mammal group is the egg-laying monotremes....
n nor australosphenidaAustralosphenidaThe Australosphenida are a clade of mammals. Today, living specimens exist only in Australia and New Guinea with only five surviving species, but fossils have been found in Madagascar and Argentina...
n
Extinctions since mid-19th century European settlement
- Auckland Islands MerganserAuckland Islands MerganserThe Auckland Merganser or Auckland Islands Merganser was a typical merganser which is now extinct.This duck was similar in size to the Red-breasted Merganser. The adult male had a dark reddish-brown head, crest and neck, with bluish black mantle and tail and slate grey wings...
, Mergus australis - Chatham Islands Rail, Cabalus modestus
- Dieffenbach's RailDieffenbach's RailThe Dieffenbach's Rail was a species of bird in the Rallidae family. It was endemic to New Zealand. It became extinct due to introduced predators.-References:...
, Gallirallus dieffenbachii - South Island SnipeSouth Island SnipeThe South Island Snipe , also known as the Stewart Island Snipe or Tutukiwi in Maori, is an extinct species of bird in the Scolopacidae, or sandpiper family that was endemic to New Zealand.-Taxonomy and etymology:...
, Coenocorypha iredalei - North Island SnipeNorth Island SnipeThe North Island Snipe , also known as the Little Barrier Snipe, is an extinct species of bird in the Scolopacidae, or sandpiper family that was endemic to New Zealand.-Taxonomy and etymology:...
, Coenocorypha barrierensis - New Zealand QuailNew Zealand QuailThe New Zealand Quail , or koreke , has been extinct since 1875. The male and female were similar, except the female was lighter. The first scientist to describe it was Sir Joseph Banks when he visited New Zealand on James Cook's first voyage...
, Coturnix novaezelandidae - North Island TakaheNorth Island TakaheThe North Island Takahē or Mōho, Porphyrio mantelli, is an extinct rail that was found in the North Island of New Zealand. This flightless species is known from subfossils from a number of archeological sites and from one possible 1894 record...
, Porphyrio mantelli - South Island Kokako, Callaeas cinerea cinerea (Believed extinct from the 1960s, but recent reports suggest a small population may still survive.)
- HuiaHuiaThe Huia was the largest species of New Zealand wattlebird and was endemic to the North Island of New Zealand. Its extinction in the early 20th century had two primary causes. The first was rampant overhunting to procure Huia skins for mounted specimens, which were in worldwide demand by...
, Heteralocha acutirostris - South Island PiopioSouth Island PiopioThe South Island Piopio, Turnagra capensis, also known as the New Zealand Thrush, was a passerine bird of the Turnagridae family, found only in New Zealand.-Taxonomy:...
, Turnagra capensis - North Island PiopioNorth Island PiopioThe North Island Piopio, Turnagra tanagra, was a passerine bird of the Turnagridae family. The North Island Piopio is now considered to be extinct...
, Turnagra tanagra - Chatham Islands Bellbird, Anthornis melanocephala
- New Zealand Little BitternNew Zealand Little BitternThe New Zealand Little Bittern is an extinct and enigmatic species of heron in the Ardeidae family. It was endemic to New Zealand and was last recorded alive in the 1890s....
, Ixobrychus novaezelandiae - Stephens Island WrenStephens Island WrenThe Stephens Island Wren or Lyall's Wren was a nocturnal, flightless, insectivorous passerine.-Habitat:...
, Traversia lyalii - Bush WrenBush WrenThe Bushwren , Bush Wren, or Mātuhituhi in Maori, was a very small and almost flightless bird endemic to New Zealand. It grew to about 9 cm long and 16 g in weight. It fed mostly on invertebrates which it captured by running along the branches of trees...
, Xenicus longipes- South Island Bush Wren, Xenicus longipes longipes
- North Island Bush Wren, Xenicus longipes stokesi
- Stewart Island Bush Wren, Xenicus longipes variabilis
- Chatham Islands FernbirdChatham Islands FernbirdThe Chatham Islands Fernbird is an extinct bird species endemic to Pitt Island and Mangere Island . Its next living relatives are the Snares Fernbird and the New Zealand Fernbird or Matata...
, Bowdleria rufescens - Laughing OwlLaughing OwlThe Laughing Owl , also known as Whēkau or the White-faced Owl, was an endemic owl found in New Zealand, but is now extinct. It was plentiful when European settlers arrived in New Zealand in 1840. Specimens were sent to the British Museum, where a scientific description was published in 1845...
, Sceloglaux albifacies - Chatham Islands PenguinChatham Islands PenguinThe Chatham Penguin or Chatham Islands Penguin was a species of penguin, now extinct. It is known only from subfossil bones, but may have become extinct as recently as the late 19th century as a bird kept captive at some time between 1867 and 1872 might refer to this taxon. It appears to have been...
, Eudyptes sp.
Extinctions since 14th century Māori settlement
- North Island AdzebillAdzebillThe adzebills, genus Aptornis, were two closely related bird species, the North Island Adzebill, Aptornis otidiformis, and the South Island Adzebill, Aptornis defossor, of the extinct family Aptornithidae. The family was endemic to New Zealand.They have been placed in the Gruiformes but this is not...
, Aptornis otidiformis - South Island AdzebillAdzebillThe adzebills, genus Aptornis, were two closely related bird species, the North Island Adzebill, Aptornis otidiformis, and the South Island Adzebill, Aptornis defossor, of the extinct family Aptornithidae. The family was endemic to New Zealand.They have been placed in the Gruiformes but this is not...
, Aptornis defossor - Eyles' HarrierEyles' HarrierEyles' Harrier is an extinct bird of prey which lived in New Zealand.It was an example of island gigantism, weighing over twice as much as a Swamp Harrier. It was a generalist predator, taking prey of the same size as small eagle species do – land animals weighing one or a few kilograms...
, Circus eylesi - Haast's EagleHaast's EagleHaast's Eagle was a species of massive eagles that once lived on the South Island of New Zealand. The species was the largest eagle known to have existed. Its prey consisted mainly of gigantic flightless birds that were unable to defend themselves from the striking force and speed of these eagles,...
, Harpagornis moorei - Giant Chatham Island Rail or Hawkins' RailHawkins' RailHawkins' Rail or Giant Chatham Island Rail, Diaphorapteryx hawkinsi, was a flightless extinct bird endemic to the Chatham Islands east of New Zealand. It is known to have existed only on the main islands of Chatham Island and Pitt Island...
, Diaphorapteryx hawkinsi - Hodgen's Waterhen or Hodgen's Rail, Gallinula hodgenorum
- Snipe-railSnipe-railThe Snipe-rail is an extinct flightless rail endemic to the North Island of New Zealand. The species' name is derived from the Karamu Cave from Hamilton where the holotype was discovered in 1954.-Description:...
, Capellirallus karamu - Chatham Islands Coot, Fulica chathamensis
- New Zealand Coot, Fulica prisca
- Giant Chatham Island Snipe, Coenocorypha chathamica
- New Zealand Owlet-nightjarNew Zealand Owlet-nightjarThe New Zealand Owlet-nightjar, Aegotheles novazelandiae, was a large species of owlet-nightjar formerly endemic to the islands of New Zealand. Fossil remains indicate the species was once widespread across both North Island and South Island...
, Aegotheles novaezealandiae - Grant-Mackie's Wren, Pachyplichas jagmi
- Yaldwyn's Wren or Stout-legged WrenStout-legged WrenThe Stout-legged Wren or Yaldwin's Wren is an extinct species of New Zealand wren, a family of small birds endemic to New Zealand.-History and etymology:...
, Pachyplichas yaldwyni - Long-billed WrenLong-billed Wren (New Zealand)The Long-billed Wren was a species of New Zealand wren endemic to the South Island of New Zealand. It was the only species in the genus Dendroscansor...
, Dendroscansor decurvirostris - Chatham Islands RavenChatham Islands RavenThe Chatham Islands Raven was a large songbird native to the Chatham Islands . Another closely related raven occurred on the North Island and South Island of New Zealand, namely the New Zealand Raven, C. antipodum. This was formerly included in C...
, Corvus moriorum - New Zealand RavenNew Zealand RavenThe New Zealand Raven was native to the North Island and South Island of New Zealand but is now extinct. There were two subspecies: the North Island Raven and the South Island Raven...
, Corvus antipodum- North Island RavenNew Zealand RavenThe New Zealand Raven was native to the North Island and South Island of New Zealand but is now extinct. There were two subspecies: the North Island Raven and the South Island Raven...
, Corvus antipodum antipodum - South Island RavenNew Zealand RavenThe New Zealand Raven was native to the North Island and South Island of New Zealand but is now extinct. There were two subspecies: the North Island Raven and the South Island Raven...
, Corvus antipodum pycrafti
- North Island Raven
- New Zealand Musk DuckNew Zealand Musk DuckThe New Zealand Musk Duck , also known as de Lautour’s Duck, is an extinct stiff-tailed duck native to New Zealand. It is only known from prehistoric subfossil bones...
or De Lautour's Duck, Biziura delautouri - Chatham Islands Duck, Pachyanas chathamica
- New Zealand Pink-eared Duck or Scarlett's DuckScarlett's DuckScarlett's Duck is an extinct duck species from New Zealand which was closely related to the Australian Pink-eared Duck . The scientific name commemorates the late New Zealand ornithologist and palaeontologist Ron Scarlett who discovered the holotype in 1941...
, Malacorhynchus scarletti - Finsch's DuckFinsch's DuckFinsch's Duck was a large terrestrial species of duck formerly endemic to New Zealand. The species was possibly once the most common duck in New Zealand, a supposition based on the frequency of its fossils in bone deposits...
, Chenonetta finschi - North Island GooseCnemiornisThe New Zealand Geese formed the extinct genus Cnemiornis of the family Anatidae, subfamily Anserinae.The genus, endemic to New Zealand, consisted of two species: the North Island Goose, C. gracilis and the South Island Goose C. calcitrans...
, Cnemiornis gracilis - South Island GooseCnemiornisThe New Zealand Geese formed the extinct genus Cnemiornis of the family Anatidae, subfamily Anserinae.The genus, endemic to New Zealand, consisted of two species: the North Island Goose, C. gracilis and the South Island Goose C. calcitrans...
, Cnemiornis calcitrans - New Zealand SwanNew Zealand SwanThe New Zealand Swan is an extinct swan from the Chatham Islands and the South Island of New Zealand. It was originally described as a separate species from the Black Swan based on the slightly larger size of the fossil bones found and the apparent absence of the Black Swan from New Zealand prior...
, Cygnus atratus sumnerensis - Scarlett's ShearwaterScarlett's ShearwaterScarlett's Shearwater was a species of seabird in the petrel family Procellariidae. Its common name commemorates New Zealand palaeontologist Ron Scarlett....
, Puffinus spelaeus (600 BPBefore PresentBefore Present years is a time scale used in archaeology, geology, and other scientific disciplines to specify when events in the past occurred. Because the "present" time changes, standard practice is to use AD 1950 as the origin of the age scale, reflecting the fact that radiocarbon...
) - MoaMoaThe moa were eleven species of flightless birds endemic to New Zealand. The two largest species, Dinornis robustus and Dinornis novaezelandiae, reached about in height with neck outstretched, and weighed about ....
- Bush MoaAnomalopteryxAnomalopteryx is an extinct bird genus known colloquially as the Lesser moa, Little bush moa. or Bush Moa. It stood more than tall and weighed . It inhabited much of the North Island and small sections of the South Island of New Zealand. Its habitat was lowland conifer, broad-leafed, and beech...
, Anomalopteryx didiformis - Upland Moa, Megalapteryx didinus/benhami
- Heavy-footed MoaHeavy-footed MoaThe Heavy-footed Moa, Pachyornis elephantopus, is a species of Moa from the Family Dinornithidae. This moa was widespread on the South Island only, and its habitat was the lowlands . It was a ratite and a member of the Struthioniformes Order. The Struthioniformes are flightless birds with a...
, Pachyornis elephantopus - Crested MoaCrested MoaThe Crested Moa, Pachyornis australis, is a species of Moa from the family Dinornithidae. It is one of the 11 known species of Moa to have existed. Moa are grouped together with Emus, Ostriches, Kiwis, Cassowaries, and Rheas in the Ratite group...
, Pachyornis australis - Mappin's MoaMappin's MoaMappin's Moa, Pachyornis mappini, is a Moa from the family Dinornithidae. This moa was found on the North Island only and like its fellow Pacyornis, its habitat was lowlands . It was a ratite and a member of the Struthioniformes Order. The Struthioniformes are flightless birds with a sternum...
, Pachyornis geranoides - Stout-legged MoaStout-legged moaThe Stout-legged Moa is an extinct species of New Zealand birds of the Family Moa. These moa lived on North Island, South Island, and on Stewart Island. Its habitat was the lowlands . It was a ratite and a member of the Struthioniform Order...
, Euryapteryx gravis - Coastal Moa, Euryapteryx curtus
- Eastern MoaEastern moaThe Eastern Moa, Emeus crassus, is an extinct species of moa. When the first specimens were originally described by Richard Owen, they were placed within the genus Dinornis as three different species, but, was later split off into their own genus, Emeus. E. crassus is currently the only species of...
, Emeus crassus - North Island Giant MoaNorth Island Giant MoaThe North Island Giant Moa is one of three extinct moa in the genus Dinornis. It is a ratite and a member of the Struthioniformes Order. The Struthioniformes are flightless birds with a sternum without a keel. They also have a distinctive palate...
, Dinornis novaezealandiae - Giant MoaGiant moaThe giant moa is an extinct genus of ratite birds belonging to the moa family. Like all ratites it was a member of the order Struthioniformes. The Struthioniformes are flightless birds with a sternum without a keel. They also have a distinctive palate...
, Dinornis robustus
- Bush Moa
- Waitaha penguinWaitaha PenguinThe Waitaha Penguin is an extinct species of New Zealand penguin discovered in November 2008.The new species was discovered by University of Otago and University of Adelaide scientists comparing the foot bones of 500-year-old, 100-year-old and modern specimens of penguins...
, Megadyptes waitaha
Extinctions before human settlement
- New Zealand Albatross, Manu antiquus
- Narrow-flippered Penguin, Palaeeudyptes antarcticus
- Marples' Penguin, Palaeeudyptes marplesi
- New Zealand Giant Penguin, Pachydyptes ponderosus
- Wide-flippered Penguin, Platydyptes novaezealandiae
- Amies' Penguin, Platydyptes amiesi
- Lowe's Penguin, Archaeospheniscus lowei
- Lopdell's Penguin, Archaeospheniscus lopdelli
- Duntroon Penguin, Duntroonornis parvus
- Oliver's Penguin, Korora oliveri
- Harris' Penguin, Marplesornis novaezealandiae
- Moisley's Penguin, Tereingaornis moisleyi
- Ridgen's PenguinRidgen's PenguinAptenodytes ridgeni, occasionally called Ridgen's Penguin, is an extinct species of penguin from the Early Pliocene of New Zealand. It was intermediate in size between its living congeners, standing an estimated 90–100 cm tall....
, Aptenodytes ridgeni - Tyree's Penguin, Pygoscelis tyreei
- Miocene False-toothed PelicanPelagornisPelagornis is a widely-known genus of the prehistoric pseudotooth birds. These were probably rather close relatives of either pelicans and storks, or of waterfowl, and are here placed in the order Odontopterygiformes to account for this uncertainty....
, Pelagornis miocaenus - Stirton's False-toothed Pelican, Pseudodontornis stirtoni
- Miocene diving petrel, Pelecanoides miokuaka
- Lake Manuherikia diving duck, Manuherikia lacustrina
- Douglas' duck, Manuherikia douglasi
- St Bathans shelduck, Miotadorna sactibathansi
- Johnstone's duck, Dunstanetta johnstoneorum
- Enright's duck, Matanas enrightii
Reptiles
- Ankylosaur, unidentified (CretaceousCretaceousThe Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
) - CompsognathusCompsognathusCompsognathus was a small, bipedal, carnivorous theropod dinosaur. The animal was the size of a turkey and lived around 150 million years ago, the early Tithonian stage of the late Jurassic Period, in what is now Europe. Paleontologists have found two well-preserved fossils, one in Germany...
-like creature (Late JurassicLate JurassicThe Late Jurassic is the third epoch of the Jurassic Period, and it spans the geologic time from 161.2 ± 4.0 to 145.5 ± 4.0 million years ago , which is preserved in Upper Jurassic strata. In European lithostratigraphy, the name "Malm" indicates rocks of Late Jurassic age...
) - HypsilophodontHypsilophodontHypsilophodonts were small ornithopod dinosaurs, regarded as fast, herbivorous bipeds on the order of 1–2 meters long . They are known from Asia, Australia, Europe, New Zealand, North America, and South America, from rocks of Middle Jurassic to late Cretaceous age...
, unidentified (CretaceousCretaceousThe Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
) - Joan Wiffen's TheropodJoan Wiffen's TheropodJoan Wiffen's Theropod is a currently unnamed dinosaur that was found by Joan Wiffen in Cretaceous rocks of New Zealand. It is known from one single tail vertebra, and is probably a type of Allosaur, because this is what the tail vertebra seems to resemble most...
, possibly AustralovenatorAustralovenatorAustralovenator is a genus of allosauroid theropod dinosaur from late Albian -age rocks of Australia...
(CretaceousCretaceousThe Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
) - KawekaweauKawekaweauThe Kawekaweau or Delcourt's Giant Gecko, Hoplodactylus delcourti, was by far the largest of all geckos with a snout to vent length of 370 mm and an overall length of at least 600 mm. It was endemic to New Zealand and is now believed to be extinct...
, Hoplodactylus delcourti (1870) - Narrow-bodied SkinkNarrow-Bodied SkinkThe narrow-bodied skink, Oligosoma gracilicorpus, is a species of skink in the family Scincidae. Only the holotype specimen is known, collected before 1955 on the North Island of New Zealand, probably in the vicinity of the Hokianga; it is possibly a juvenile...
, Oligosoma gracilicorpus - Northland Skink, Cyclodina northlandi (Late HoloceneHoloceneThe Holocene is a geological epoch which began at the end of the Pleistocene and continues to the present. The Holocene is part of the Quaternary period. Its name comes from the Greek words and , meaning "entirely recent"...
) - Theropod, unidentified (CretaceousCretaceousThe Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
) - TitanosaurTitanosaurTitanosaurs were a diverse group of sauropod dinosaurs, which included Saltasaurus and Isisaurus. It includes some of the heaviest creatures ever to walk the earth, such as Argentinosaurus and Paralititan — which some believe have weighed up to 100 tonnes...
, possibly DiamantinasaurusDiamantinasaurusDiamantinasaurus is a genus of derived titanosaurian dinosaur from late Albian -age rocks of Australia...
(CretaceousCretaceousThe Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
)
- MauisaurusMauisaurusMauisaurus is a genus of plesiosaur that lived during the Late Cretaceous period around 80 to 69 million years ago in what is now New Zealand. It was the largest plesiosaur, and perhaps the largest marine reptile in New Zealand waters at the time. Mauisaurus haasti is the only known species of the...
, Mauisaurus haasti (Late CretaceousCretaceousThe Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
, 65 million years ago) - MoanasaurusMoanasaurusMoanasaurus was a genus of mosasaur from the Late Cretaceous period. Its fossil remains have been discovered in the North Island of New Zealand. Moanasaurus was a very large mosasaurine known originally from a disarticulated skull, vertebrae, ribs and paddle bones...
, Moanasaurus mangahouangae (Late CretaceousLate CretaceousThe Late Cretaceous is the younger of two epochs into which the Cretaceous period is divided in the geologic timescale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous series...
) - NothosaurNothosaurNothosaurs were Triassic marine sauropterygian reptiles that may have lived like seals of today, catching food in water but coming ashore on rocks and beaches. They averaged about in length, with a long body and tail. The feet were paddle-like, and are known to have been webbed in life, to help...
, unidentified, (TriassicTriassicThe Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
) - New Zealand PlesiosaurKaiwhekeaKaiwhekea is an extinct genus of plesiosaur from the Late Cretaceous of what is now New Zealand. The type species, Kaiwhekea katiki, was first described by Arthur Cruickshank and Ewan Fordyce in 2002. Kaiwhekea was approximately 7 meters long and lived around 69-70 million years ago...
, Kaiwhekea katiki (Late CretaceousCretaceousThe Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
, 69–70 million years ago) - Waipara mosasaurPrognathodonPrognathodon is an extinct genus of marine reptile belonging to the mosasaur family. It had protective bony rings surrounding its eye sockets, indicating it lived in deep water. its fossil remains have been found in the U.S.A , Canada , Belgium, New Zealand, Morocco and The Netherlands...
, Prognathodon waiparaensis (Late CretaceousCretaceousThe Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
, 70 million years ago)
Amphibians
- Aurora frog, Leiopelma auroraensis
- Markham's frog, Leiopelma markhami
- Waitomo frog, Leiopelma waitomoensis
- Stereospondyl – http://www.otago.ac.nz/geology/features/paleontology/stereospondyl.html
Fish
- New Zealand graylingNew Zealand graylingThe New Zealand grayling, Prototroctes oxyrhynchus, is an extinct smelt of the genus Prototroctes, which was found only in lowland rivers and streams of New Zealand. Their length was between 20 and 40 cm....
, Prototroctes oxyrhynchus (1930s) - New Zealand white sharkNew Zealand white sharkCarcharocles angustidens is a prehistoric megatoothed shark, which lived during the Oligocene and Miocene epochs approximately about 35 to 22 million years ago. This shark is believed to be closely related to another extinct megatoothed shark, C. megalodon. However, just as in the case of C...
, Carcharodon angustidens (Late OligoceneOligoceneThe Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
, 26 M years) - Giant oprah, Megalampris keyesi (Late OligoceneOligoceneThe Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
, 26 M years)
Molluscs
- Placostylus ambagiosus gardneri Land snail, Recent
- Placostylus ambagiosus hinemoa Land snail, Recent
- Placostylus ambagiosus lesleyae Land snail, Recent
- Placostylus ambagiosus priscus Land snail, Recent
- Placostylus ambagiosus spiritus Land snail, Recent
- Placostylus ambagiosus worthyi Land snail, Recent
Rediscovered species
- Karocolens tuberculatusKarocolens tuberculatusHadramphus tuberculatus is a rare weevil endemic to the Christchurch area in the South Island of New Zealand. It was thought to be extinct from 1922 to 2004...
, Canterbury knobbed weevil, Spaniard weevil or Banks Peninsula speargrass weevil (2005) - New Zealand Storm-petrelNew Zealand Storm-petrelThe New Zealand Storm Petrel is a small seabird of the tubenose family. Previously thought to be extinct since 1850, a series of sightings from 2003 to the present indicate the presence of a previously unknown colony. it is ranked on the IUCN Red List as critically endangered...
, Oceanites maorianus (2003) - South Island Takahe, Porphyrio hochstetteri (1948)
- KakapoKakapoThe Kakapo , Strigops habroptila , also called owl parrot, is a species of large, flightless nocturnal parrot endemic to New Zealand...
, Strigops habroptila (1974) note: before 1974 there was only one aging male of the species known until new populations were discovered - Campbell Island TealCampbell Island TealThe Campbell Teal or Campbell Island Teal is a small, flightless, nocturnal species of dabbling duck of the genus Anas endemic to the Campbell Island group of New Zealand. It is sometimes considered conspecific with the Brown Teal...
, Anas nesiotis (1975) - Campbell Island SnipeCampbell Island SnipeThe Campbell Snipe or Campbell Island Snipe is a rare subspecies of the Subantarctic Snipe, endemic to Campbell Island, a subantarctic island south of New Zealand in the Southern Ocean. It was not formally described until 2009...
, Coenocorypha Campbell (1997) - Chatham Island Taiko, Pterodroma magentae (1978)
See also
- List of extinct animals
- Extinct birdsExtinct birdsSince 1500, over 190 species of birds have become extinct, and this rate of extinction seems to be increasing. The situation is exemplified by Hawaii, where 30% of all known recently extinct bird taxa originally lived...
(1500 – present) - Later Quaternary prehistoric birds
- List of extinct plants of New Zealand
- New Zealand Threat Classification SystemNew Zealand Threat Classification SystemThe New Zealand Threat Classification System is used by the Department of Conservation to assess conservation priorities of species in New Zealand....