Tahitian Sandpiper
Encyclopedia
The Tahiti Sandpiper or Tahitian Sandpiper, Prosobonia leucoptera, is an extinct member of the large wader
family Scolopacidae
that was endemic
to Tahiti
in French Polynesia
.
It was discovered in 1773 during Captain Cook’s
second voyage where it seems that a single specimen was collected, but became extinct in the nineteenth century. Only one museum specimen is known to exist. The bird's name in the Tahitian language
was transcribed as toromē.
. Wing coverts with some rusty edging. Remiges with paler inner surfaces. Underside of wing dusky brown with paler edges to coverts. A crescent-shaped white patch formed by tertiary coverts; smaller on the underside of the wing. Ten primaries, twelve rectrices. Central tail feathers sooty brown with rusty tips; outer ones rusty with sooty brown barring.
Bill blackish, lower mandible
slightly paler, pointed, thin and short, rather like in an insectivorous
passerine
than a wader. Legs greenish-hued pale straw color. Toes unwebbed. A slim pale rusty ring around the eye. The iris
was very dark brown.
The Tahitian Sandpiper is believed to have occurred near small streams.
Two (probably) specimens taken on Moorea
by William Anderson
between September 30 and October 11, 1777, formed the basis for the description of the White-winged Sandpiper
. The 3 specimens which were mentioned by John Latham
in 1787 all differed from one another, but the single remaining one, RMNH
87556, cannot be positively identified with any of them and how it came into the possession of the museum cannot be retraced with complete certainty, but it probably was acquired in 1819 with other Forster specimens (Stresemann, 1950). In addition, there exists a painting by Georg Forster
drawn from the original specimen (see below) and a beautiful lithograph reconstruction by John Gerrard Keulemans
.
At any rate, the specimen agrees better with the Tahiti bird in Forster's painting, the Moorea bird - of which another painting, by William Ellis and a plate by J. Webber, supposed to depict the other specimen, constitutes all remaining evidence - differing in the color of wings and head. Whether these two forms were species, subspecies or simply variants due to age or sex cannot be determined with certainty, but for the time being, they are more often being treated as different species than not.
Bones of a related form have been found on Mangaia
in the Cook Islands
. It is not likely that they will be studied anytime soon: a scientific description would require either successful extraction and analysis of DNA
from both the bones and the Leiden specimen (which would risk being damaged during extraction of the tissue sample), or the collection of a sufficient amount of material from Tahiti and/or Moorea to determine the Mangaia bird's affiliation by analysis of the osteology
. Both possibilities seem very remote.
Wader
Waders, called shorebirds in North America , are members of the order Charadriiformes, excluding the more marine web-footed seabird groups. The latter are the skuas , gulls , terns , skimmers , and auks...
family Scolopacidae
Scolopacidae
The sandpipers are a large family, Scolopacidae, of waders or shorebirds. They include many species called sandpipers, as well as those called by names such as curlew and snipe. The majority of these species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil...
that was endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
to Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
in French Polynesia
French Polynesia
French Polynesia is an overseas country of the French Republic . It is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands, the most famous island being Tahiti in the Society Islands group, which is also the most populous island and the seat of the capital of the territory...
.
It was discovered in 1773 during Captain Cook’s
James Cook
Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
second voyage where it seems that a single specimen was collected, but became extinct in the nineteenth century. Only one museum specimen is known to exist. The bird's name in the Tahitian language
Tahitian language
Tahitian is an indigenous language spoken mainly in the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is an Eastern Polynesian language closely related to the other indigenous languages spoken in French Polynesia: Marquesan, Tuamotuan, Mangarevan, and Austral Islands languages...
was transcribed as toromē.
Description
Based on Zusi & Jehl (1970): A small (some 18 sm long), plain-colored sandpiper, brown below, darker above, with a white wing patch. Top and sides of head and neck to wings and back sooty brown, darker on back and wings. A small white patch behind and above the eye. Chin buffish white. Lores, rump and underside rustyRust (color)
Rust is a red-brown-orange color resembling iron oxide. It is a commonly used color in stage lighting, and appears roughly the same color as photographic safelights when used over a standard tungsten light source. The color is number 777 in the swatch book....
. Wing coverts with some rusty edging. Remiges with paler inner surfaces. Underside of wing dusky brown with paler edges to coverts. A crescent-shaped white patch formed by tertiary coverts; smaller on the underside of the wing. Ten primaries, twelve rectrices. Central tail feathers sooty brown with rusty tips; outer ones rusty with sooty brown barring.
Bill blackish, lower mandible
Mandible
The mandible pronunciation or inferior maxillary bone forms the lower jaw and holds the lower teeth in place...
slightly paler, pointed, thin and short, rather like in an insectivorous
Insectivore
An insectivore is a type of carnivore with a diet that consists chiefly of insects and similar small creatures. An alternate term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of eating insects....
passerine
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
than a wader. Legs greenish-hued pale straw color. Toes unwebbed. A slim pale rusty ring around the eye. The iris
Iris (anatomy)
The iris is a thin, circular structure in the eye, responsible for controlling the diameter and size of the pupils and thus the amount of light reaching the retina. "Eye color" is the color of the iris, which can be green, blue, or brown. In some cases it can be hazel , grey, violet, or even pink...
was very dark brown.
The Tahitian Sandpiper is believed to have occurred near small streams.
Two (probably) specimens taken on Moorea
Moorea
Moʻorea is a high island in French Polynesia, part of the Society Islands, 17 km northwest of Tahiti. Its position is . Moʻorea means "yellow lizard" in Tahitian...
by William Anderson
William Anderson (naturalist)
William Anderson was a Scottish naturalist, one of seven children of schoolmaster Robert Anderson and Jean...
between September 30 and October 11, 1777, formed the basis for the description of the White-winged Sandpiper
White-winged Sandpiper
The White-winged Sandpiper, Prosobonia ellisi, is an extinct member of the large wader family Scolopacidae that was endemic to the Moorea in French Polynesia, where the locals called it te-te in the Tahitian language....
. The 3 specimens which were mentioned by John Latham
John Latham (ornithologist)
John Latham was an English physician, naturalist and author. He was born at Eltham in Kent, and was the eldest son of John Latham, a surgeon there, and his mother was a descendant of the Sothebys, in Yorkshire....
in 1787 all differed from one another, but the single remaining one, RMNH
Naturalis
Naturalis is the national natural history museum of the Netherlands, based in Leiden. It originated from the merger of the Rijksmuseum van Natuurlijke Historie and the Rijksmuseum van Geologie en Mineralogie in 1984. In 1986 it was decided that the museum had to become a public museum and a new...
87556, cannot be positively identified with any of them and how it came into the possession of the museum cannot be retraced with complete certainty, but it probably was acquired in 1819 with other Forster specimens (Stresemann, 1950). In addition, there exists a painting by Georg Forster
Georg Forster
Johann Georg Adam Forster was a German naturalist, ethnologist, travel writer, journalist, and revolutionary. At an early age, he accompanied his father on several scientific expeditions, including James Cook's second voyage to the Pacific...
drawn from the original specimen (see below) and a beautiful lithograph reconstruction by John Gerrard Keulemans
John Gerrard Keulemans
Johannes Gerardus Keulemans was a Dutch bird illustrator.-Biography and Work:...
.
At any rate, the specimen agrees better with the Tahiti bird in Forster's painting, the Moorea bird - of which another painting, by William Ellis and a plate by J. Webber, supposed to depict the other specimen, constitutes all remaining evidence - differing in the color of wings and head. Whether these two forms were species, subspecies or simply variants due to age or sex cannot be determined with certainty, but for the time being, they are more often being treated as different species than not.
Bones of a related form have been found on Mangaia
Mangaia
Mangaia is the most southerly of the Cook Islands and the second largest, after Rarotonga.-Geography:...
in the Cook Islands
Cook Islands
The Cook Islands is a self-governing parliamentary democracy in the South Pacific Ocean in free association with New Zealand...
. It is not likely that they will be studied anytime soon: a scientific description would require either successful extraction and analysis of DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
from both the bones and the Leiden specimen (which would risk being damaged during extraction of the tissue sample), or the collection of a sufficient amount of material from Tahiti and/or Moorea to determine the Mangaia bird's affiliation by analysis of the osteology
Osteology
Osteology is the scientific study of bones. A subdiscipline of anatomy, anthropology, and archeology, osteology is a detailed study of the structure of bones, skeletal elements, teeth, morphology, function, disease, pathology, the process of ossification , the resistance and hardness of bones , etc...
. Both possibilities seem very remote.
External links
- 3D view of specimen RMNH 87556 at the NaturalisNaturalisNaturalis is the national natural history museum of the Netherlands, based in Leiden. It originated from the merger of the Rijksmuseum van Natuurlijke Historie and the Rijksmuseum van Geologie en Mineralogie in 1984. In 1986 it was decided that the museum had to become a public museum and a new...
, Leiden (requires QuickTimeQuickTimeQuickTime is an extensible proprietary multimedia framework developed by Apple Inc., capable of handling various formats of digital video, picture, sound, panoramic images, and interactivity. The classic version of QuickTime is available for Windows XP and later, as well as Mac OS X Leopard and...
browser plugin). - BirdLife Species Factsheet.