Emberiza alcoveri (Long-legged Bunting)

[Melanie]

Associated elements of 8 individuals are known.
Holotype. Specimen 1: associated elements
including cranium lacking palatal area and jugal
bars, complete mandible, right tarsometatarsus
(distal part), left tibiotarsus (lacking proximal
epiphysis), right tibiotarsus, left ulna (lacking
proximal epiphysis), right femur (proximal part),
and synsacrum (axial part). Bones numbered individually,
CVOl-CV08. Collected in August,
1994 by J. C. Rando and M. Lopez.
Type locality. Cueva de1 Viento.
Distribution. Cueva de1 Viento. Tenerife, Canary
Islands.
Horizon. Upper Pleistocene-Holocene.
Status. Extinct.
Etymology. The specific name is in honor of
J. A. Alcover for his contributions to the knowledge
of insular vertebrate fossil faunas.

elibrary.unm.edu/sora/Condor/files/issues/v101n01/p0001-p0013.pdf

[another specialist]

A NEW SPECIES OF EXTINCT FLIGHTLESS PASSERINE
(EMBERIZIDAE: EMBEZ?ZZA) FROM THE CANARY ISLANDS’
J. C. RANDO AND M. LOPEZ
Departamento de Genetica, Universidad de La Laguna, La Laguna E-38271, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain,
e-mail: [e-mail]
B. SECUi
Departament de Ciencies de la Terra, Universitat de les llles Balears, Palma E-07071, Mallorca,
Balearic Islands, Spain

Abstract. Long-legged Bunting (Emberiza alcoveri), a new species of extinct passerine, is described from bones found in Cueva del Viento, a volcanic cave at Tenerife in the Canary
Islands. Cranial osteology situates the species at one end of the range of variation of the genus. Its reduced forelimb bones and carina stemi, long hindlimb bones, and estimated wing length, weight, and wing loading, show Long-legged Bunting to be a flightless passerine.The ratio of humerus + ulna + carpometacarpus length/femur length is similar to Stephens Island Wren (Traversia lyalli) and Long-billed Wren(Dendroscansor decurvirostris), two extinct flightless passerines from New Zealand. The reduction of presumed habitat of Long-legged Bunting, the Laurel forest, and the introduction of terrestrial predators to the island seem to be the reasons for its extinction. Key words: Canary Islands, Emberiza alcoveri, extinction, jlightlessness, Long-legged
Bunting, new species, paleontology, Passeriformes.

72.14.207.104/search?q=cache:0tZQA0bDZkAJ:elibrary.unm.edu/sora/Condor/files/issues/v101n01/p0001-p0013.pdf+Canariomys+bravoi&hl=en

tinyurl.com/bawaz

[another specialist]

The effects of the cat in the Canary Islands


The Canary archipelago has not been an exception, and the endemic vertebrates have already been numerous that have disappeared from the arrival of the man. The cat could have been one of the causes of the disappearance of some little flying birds like the gomera quail ( Coturnix gomerae ), or the calandria of long legs ( Emberiza alcoveri ); also it had probably a paper protagonist in the extinction of the giant múridos ones of Tenerife and Canary Gran ( Canariomys bravoi and C. tamarani ), and in the one of at least saurio of great size, the palmero lizard ( Gallotia auaritae ).

translated from spanish to english

www.gobiernodecanarias.org/medioambiente/lagartodelagomera/gatos.html

[Carlos]

From a popular article on Canary Is Extinct Vertebrates, made by an expert Canarian palaeontologist:

RANDO, J. C. (2003): Protagonistas de una catástrofe silenciosa. Los vertebrados extintos de Canarias. El Indiferente, 14: 3-15.

(Translated from Spanish by me)

Long-legged Bunting (Emberiza alcoveri)

It was about the size of a Corn Bunting (Miliaria calandra) of some 40 grams and had a more curved and longer bill than its closer relatives, as well as a more voluminous and rounded skull. The good preservation of its bones has allowed us to disclose some intimate details about its appearance.

So in relation to Cabanis’s Bunting (Emberiza cabanisi), a sub-saharan species about the same size that share several osteological features with it, Emberiza alcoveri shows a 30% reduction on the length of the wing as well as 80% reduction on the carina sterni, the bone area of the sternum where the main fly muscles are attached. In the other hand, the leg bones are a 10% longer and, above all, sturdier, and that to a bird that weighted a 35% more. This implies that this species had an enormous wing load, provided that this bird could indeed fly. In this sense the wing load obtained is a 53% bigger than in Emberiza cabanisi.

All these data show that this bird was unable to fly and that it used to live on the ground, most likely in the laurel forest, feeding on the great array of seeds and insects that this habitat provides.

Its remains were found in a volcanic cave in Tenerife Island. Due to its habits and anatomic features it must have been very vulnerable to rat and cat predation and its extinction could have happened quite recently.

[Agent 204]

Your link is dead, another specialist.

This is an interesting species- it is the only flightless oscine ("true" songbird) that I've heard of.

[Deleted]

mkeenan204 said:

it is the only flightless oscine

... if it really was flightless ...

[Carlos]

mkeenan204 said:

This is an interesting species- it is the only flightless oscine ("true" songbird) that I've heard of.

Xenicus lially (St.Stephen Is Wren), an extinct Xenicid from New Zealand was also reported to be flightless (or a very bad flyer, anyway, like Emberiza alcoveri)

[another specialist]

mkeenan204 said:

Your link is dead, another specialist.

This is an interesting species- it is the only flightless oscine ("true" songbird) that I've heard of.

This thread seems to of been deleted now due to it being about this species inquestion- a repeated thread

[Agent 204]

carlos said:

Xenicus lially (St.Stephen Is Wren), an extinct Xenicid from New Zealand was also reported to be flightless (or a very bad flyer, anyway, like Emberiza alcoveri)

It was, but note that I said "oscine", not "passerine". New Zealand wrens are suboscines. Incidentally, it seems from the Wikipedia entry on X. lyalli that there were a couple of other flightless wrens in that family, known only from fossil or subfossil remains, so there's four or five flightless passerines- but only one flightless oscine.

[another specialist]

mkeenan204 said:

carlos said:

Xenicus lially (St.Stephen Is Wren), an extinct Xenicid from New Zealand was also reported to be flightless (or a very bad flyer, anyway, like Emberiza alcoveri)

It was, but note that I said "oscine", not "passerine". New Zealand wrens are suboscines. Incidentally, it seems from the Wikipedia entry on X. lyalli that there were a couple of other flightless wrens in that family, known only from fossil or subfossil remains, so there's four or five flightless passerines- but only one flightless oscine.

This other wrens include the following -

Yaldwyn's Wren - Pachyplichas yaldwyni
? - Pachyplichas jagmi
? - Dendroscansor decurvirostris
Stephens Island wren - Xenicus lyalli
North island bush wren - Xenicus longipes stokesii
Stead's bush wren - Xenicus longipes variabilis
South Island bush wren - Xenicus longipes longipes

all above extinct

Rock wren - Xenicus gilviventris

still exists

[Carlos]

Xenicids or Acanthisittidae, rather, are indeed generally considered suboscine passerines, so I beg your pardon for a quick reading and a quick reply.

In fact, they are considered to be the most primitive of all living passerines, representatives of an ancient lineage with no living relatives, supporting the theory of a Gondwanan origin for this order, already in the Cretaceous.

Nevertheless, the relationship of this family to other groups is far from clear:

• Sibley et al (1982), from the first DNA-DNA hybridization studies, indicated that the Acanthisittidae are the sister group to the suboscines.
  
  
• Raikow (1984), from analisys of the hind-limb myology concluded that they were outside from the suboscine radiation and he further stated that the syringeal anatomy excluded them also from the oscine group.
  
  
• Sibley & Ahlquist (1990), from a extensive DNA-DNA hybridization study, mentioned the possibility that Acanthisittidae should be asigned to a new, monotypic suborder.
  
  
• Barker et al (2001), in their phylogenetic hypothesis of Passerine birds, based on nuclear DNA data, support the possibility that Acanthisitta is the sister group to all other passerines (both oscines and suboscines included).

Data shows that this family radiated to at least seven species in five genera (Acanthisitta, Xenicus, Traversia, Pachyplichas and Dendroscansor, the last three extinct).

Traversia (merged at times with Xenicus) correspond to the extinct Stephens Is Wren, which was just a relict population as it has been found in holocene deposits in both main islands.

Three species are known from late Pleistocene - Holocene caves and sand dune deposits, that probably died out after the Maori colonization in about 1250. Two belong to the genus Pachyplichas, and were described in 1988: the North Island Stout-legged Wren (P. jagmi) and the South Island Stout-legged Wren (P. yaldwyni).

The last of the extinct species, the Long Billed Wren (Dendroscansor decurvirostris), found only in the South Island, is the only one with long decurved bill and reduced sternum and therefore, the only flightless species apart from Stephens Wren.

(Info extracted from HBW9)

That makes a total of three known flightless (to a certain degree) passerines. One oscine (E. alcoveri) and two, let's say, "non-oscine" (T. (X.) lyalli and D. decurvirostris) passerines.

[Carlos]

Very good news, at least to me. I've just received HBW12. It deals with Picathartidae to Paridae families. As always, spectacular and full of surprises, like the new genus rearrangement within Paridae and the confirmation of the genus Sylvia being in fact babblers (Timaliidae), leaving the difficult task to rename the remaining "Sylvidae" an issue not yet undertaken.

It also includes a very good study on the fossil and subfossil bird record by Dr Kevin J. Caley in the foreword (HBW's forewords are, themselves, in deep thematic monographies, one per volume). Dr Caley is also the author of the very good drawings illustrating the text.

As an example I'd make a citation of the text dealing with Emberiza alcoveri:

Caley, K.J. (2007) Fossil Birds, in del Hoyo et al. (Eds) Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 12. Ed. Lynx (Barcelona).

pp40-41:

"....only three species of passerines are truly flightless ... the third species ... was an emberizid, described as 'Long-legged Bunting' (Emberiza alcoveri) and found on the island of Tenerife in the Canaries. It occupied the laurel forest of the island at least until the early Holocene. Larger than any living Emberiza, E. alcoveri was 39% heavier than one of its closest relatives, Cabanis's Bunting (Emberiza cabanisi) of Africa, and possessed longer legs and shorter wings. Like that species, it was a seed-eater, although in this particular case it was capable of feeding on the harder seeds characteristic of the island. E. alcoveri probably nested on the ground, in common with many island species where ground predators do not exist. It was this trait that led to the final demise of the species, when its island home was invaded by the first human colonist, who not only destroyed its fragile habitat, but also brought with them such exotic predators as cats and rats (Rando et al. 1999)."

[sebbe67]

carlos said:

Very good news, at least to me. I've just received HBW12. It deals with Picathartidae to Paridae families. As always, spectacular and full of surprises, like the new genus rearrangement within Paridae and the confirmation of the genus Sylvia being in fact babblers (Timaliidae), leaving the difficult task to rename the remaining "Sylvidae" an issue not yet undertaken.

It also includes a very good study on the fossil and subfossil bird record by Dr Kevin J. Caley in the foreword (HBW's forewords are, themselves, in deep thematic monographies, one per volume). Dr Caley is also the author of the very good drawings illustrating the text.

As an example I'd make a citation of the text dealing with Emberiza alcoveri:

Caley, K.J. (2007) Fossil Birds, in del Hoyo et al. (Eds) Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 12. Ed. Lynx (Barcelona).

pp40-41:

"....only three species of passerines are truly flightless ... the third species ... was an emberizid, described as 'Long-legged Bunting' (Emberiza alcoveri) and found on the island of Tenerife in the Canaries. It occupied the laurel forest of the island at least until the early Holocene. Larger than any living Emberiza, E. alcoveri was 39% heavier than one of its closest relatives, Cabanis's Bunting (Emberiza cabanisi) of Africa, and possessed longer legs and shorter wings. Like that species, it was a seed-eater, although in this particular case it was capable of feeding on the harder seeds characteristic of the island. E. alcoveri probably nested on the ground, in common with many island species where ground predators do not exist. It was this trait that led to the final demise of the species, when its island home was invaded by the first human colonist, who not only destroyed its fragile habitat, but also brought with them such exotic predators as cats and rats (Rando et al. 1999)."

WOW! you have HBW12 already Carlos? if so aim green with envy ;D.

Then it seems like HBW has been good at shipping out copies then, HBW11 was really delayed and I have read and heard about concerns that HBW12 would not reach the first customers until December 07/January 08.

Excellent news to hear that the first copies are out already, but you have a large advantage as you live in Spain I guess I have to wait another 5-7 weeks to get mine. Luckily I decided to make the order to my Singapore adress, good know how long time I would take here in Myanmar.

Seems like the book is loaded with info as always however, could you please give me some impressions about the book so far? I would love to hear them.

Enjoy the book my friend and I hope that you realize how fortunate you are ;D

[Carlos]

sebbe67 said:

Seems like the book is loaded with info as always however, could you please give me some impressions about the book so far? I would love to hear them.

Enjoy the book my friend and I hope that you realize how fortunate you are ;D

Indeed I am, Sebbe. Of course, having an standing order for the whole HBW series and living in Spain helps a lot

Just before I'm writing this, I've been reading HBW12 for several hours. As always I can't stop reading here and there. The foreword on fossil birds is very good and enjoyable and discovering so many exotic passerines is fascinating.

I think that living in Indochina you'll particularly enjoy the babblers and babbler like families, so diverse there and so thoroughly treated in this volume (The Timaliidae family account, only, has about sixty pages!!). I certainly think of you when reading species of Burmese range. A better scenery of Burmese bird life, much better than the human one nowadays, I'm afraid.

Hope you get your copy soon.

[another specialist]

elibrary.unm.edu/sora/Condor/files/issues/v101n01/p0001-p0013.pdf

[another specialist]

elibrary.unm.edu/sora/Condor/files/issues/v101n01/p0001-p0013.pdf