|
|
Post by sordes on Aug 20, 2007 21:04:43 GMT
There was a species of pigeon at Tonga which was larger than any other living or extinct relative. It was about 1,8 times bigger than Ducula pacifica and may have had a length of about 70cm and a weight of more than 2kg. Potential disruptions to seed dispersal mutualisms in Tonga, Western Polynesia www.botany.hawaii.edu/faculty/drake/2002%20Meehan%20JBiogeog.pdf |
|
|
|
Post by another specialist on Aug 20, 2007 21:48:09 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by sordes on Aug 21, 2007 6:55:40 GMT
It is most probably that it was a new species, because it was much bigger than any other living or extinct ducula. Estimations showed that it was probably able to swallow fruits up to a diameter of 48mm, in contrast the maximum diameter for D. david was only 36mm.
|
|
|
|
Post by another specialist on Aug 21, 2007 8:08:38 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by another specialist on Aug 28, 2007 9:49:05 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by another specialist on Sept 9, 2008 18:25:47 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by Melanie on Nov 18, 2019 22:49:12 GMT
Prehistoric avifaunas from the Kingdom of Tonga Trevor H Worthy, David V Burley Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, zlz110, doi.org/10.1093/zoolinnean/zlz110Abstract Avifaunas derived from Lapita archaeological sites excavated between 2004 and 2014 from four sites in the Vava'u Group and two on Tongatapu, Kingdom of Tonga are described, revealing birds encountered by the first human arrivals. A total of 741 identifiable bones revealed 24 avian taxa, among which terrestrial birds, especially rails, pigeons and parrots, were the most abundant. At a minimum, eight taxa, or 50% of the original non-passerine land bird diversity in the sample, are globally extinct. These include two megapodes (Megapodius alimentum and a larger unnamed megapode), three pigeons (a large Caloenas sp. indet., Didunculus placopedetes and Ducula shutleri sp. nov.), two rails (Hypotaenidia vavauensis sp. nov. and an unnamed one) and the parrot Eclectus infectus. The rail H. vavauensis was restricted to Vava'u and was flightless, with reduced wings, and larger than Hypotaenidia woodfordi of the Solomons, the largest congener hitherto found in the Pacific. The pigeon Du. shutleri was volant, but was the largest species in its genus and was widespread in the Kingdom. The evolution of Tongan avifaunas is related to varying ages (Pliocene to Pleistocene) of the island groups, where geological youth apparently precluded true giantism in the fauna. academic.oup.com/zoolinnean/advance-article/doi/10.1093/zoolinnean/zlz110/5628820 |
|
