Ascension Night Heron

The Ascension Night Heron (Nycticorax Olsoni ) is a little known extinct heron that was endemic to Ascension. She is primarily known by subfossil bones of six specimens that were found by the British ornithologist Philip Ashmole, Kenneth Edwin Laurence Ryder Simmons and William Richmond Postle Bourne in the guano deposits and caves of Ascension and the basis of which described the type 2003.

Perhaps the Ascension Night Heron (also Aponard or Aponat sometimes written) with the Aponar identical, was mentioned a bird (published in 1558 ) in André Thevet travelogue " Of Ilande named at the Ascention " from 1555. After Thevet records of the bird to have been as large as a heron and flightless. He also was characterized by small wings, a black back, a white belly and a cormorant -like beak. If you killed these birds, they should have squealed like pigs. The Ascension Night Heron died probably in the 16th century by overhunting and entrained mammals. The specific epithet refers to Ashmoles colleagues Storrs Lovejoy Olson.