Tahiti Sandpiper

Society runners ( Prosobonia leucoptera )

The company runners ( Prosobonia leucoptera ), also known as Tahitian beach runner or in the Tahitian language as Torome, is an extinct species of bird in the family of the Waders. He was endemic to Tahiti.

Discovery

The company runner was discovered in 1773 on Captain James Cook's second Pacific voyage. It seems that only one specimen was collected, which is now in the Museum Naturalis, is located in Leiden, Netherlands.

Two (possible ) specimens that were collected by William Anderson between September 30 and October 11, 1777 Moorea, formed the basis for the description of the white-winged South Seas traveler ( Prosobonia ellisi ). The three specimens that were mentioned in 1787 by John Latham, all distinguished. The remaining specimen ( RMNH Naturalis - 87556 ), however, can not be uniquely determined, nor can be traced with complete certainty how it came into the possession of the museum. Maybe it was in 1819 along with other forest - acquired copies ( Stresemann, 1950). In addition, there is a drawing by Georg Forster and a lithographic reconstruction by John Gerrard Keulemans.

Description

The company runners reached a size of 17.5 inches. The wing length was 11.3 cm, the tail length of 5.4 inches and the run was 3.4 inches long.

The crest was blackish. The coloring of the neck and sides of the head was dark brown. The reins and ear covers were red with a white spot behind the eye. The cheeks were rusty and throat brownish white. The back and wings were blackish. Characteristic was a small crescent-shaped white patch on the bend of wing, which was formed by some of the small wing-coverts. The two middle tail feathers blackish, the rest reddish brown with black banding. The bottom was rusty and not ties. The iris and the beak were black. The legs and feet had a greenish tinge.

Way of life

The company runner was a ground-nesting birds and kept preferably near small rivers.

Extinction

In 1777 he was described by William Anderson, the ship's surgeon on Cook's third Pacific voyage, as often. Since Cook's ships were plagued on this journey of rats and cockroaches, let James Cook ropes of the ships for Tahitian tighten bank to get rid of the vermin. As a ground-nesting birds of the company runner was easy prey for the rats. A few years after 1777 it was extinct.