Turnagra capensis (front; Turnagra tanagra behind)
Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Superclassis: Sarcopterygii
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Classis: Reptilia
Cladus: Eureptilia
Cladus: Romeriida
Subclassis: Diapsida
Cladus: Sauria
Infraclassis: Archosauromorpha
Cladus: Crurotarsi
Divisio: Archosauria
Cladus: Avemetatarsalia
Cladus: Ornithodira
Subtaxon: Dinosauromorpha
Cladus: Dinosauriformes
Cladus: Dracohors
Cladus: Dinosauria
Ordo: Saurischia
Cladus: Eusaurischia
Cladus: Theropoda
Cladus: Neotheropoda
Cladus: Averostra
Cladus: Tetanurae
Cladus: Avetheropoda
Cladus: Coelurosauria
Cladus: Tyrannoraptora
Cladus: Maniraptoromorpha
Cladus: Maniraptoriformes
Cladus: Maniraptora
Cladus: Pennaraptora
Cladus: Paraves
Cladus: Eumaniraptora
Cladus: Avialae
Infraclassis: Aves
Cladus: Euavialae
Cladus: Avebrevicauda
Cladus: Pygostylia
Cladus: Ornithothoraces
Cladus: Euornithes
Cladus: Ornithuromorpha
Cladus: Ornithurae
Cladus: Carinatae
Parvclassis: Neornithes
Cohors: Neognathae
Cladus: Neoaves
Cladus: Telluraves
Cladus: Australaves
Ordo: Passeriformes
Subordo: Passeri
Parvordo: Corvida
Superfamilia: Corvoidea
Familia: Oriolidae
Genus: Turnagra
Species: †Turnagra capensis
Name
Turnagra capensis (Sparrman, 1787)
Synonymy
Tanagra capensis (protonym)
References
Museum Carlsonianum fasc.2 no.xlv BHL pl.45 BHL.
Additional references
Zuccon, D. & Ericson, P. G. P. 2012. Molecular and morphological evidences place the extinct New Zealand endemic Turnagra capensis in the Oriolidae. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 62 (1): 414–426 DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2011.10.013.
IUCN: Turnagra capensis (Extinct)
Vernacular names
English: South Island Piopio
suomi: Eteläsaarenpiopio
français: Piopio de Nouvelle-Zélande
magyar: Moarigó
Nederlands: Zuidereilandpiopio
polski: Rdzawka południowa
svenska: Sydöpiopio
中文: 新西蘭鶇鶲
The South Island piopio (Turnagra capensis) also known as the New Zealand thrush, was a passerine bird of the family Oriolidae.
Taxonomy and systematics
South Island piopio on right, North Island Piopio at left
The South Island piopio was originally described in the genus Tanagra (a synonym for Tangara) and subsequently classified by some authorities in the genus Turdus. For a long time the South Island piopio was considered conspecific with the North Island piopio that dwelt in New Zealand's North Island as the piopio, but later they were recognised as two distinct species due to pronounced differences in external appearance and osteology (Olson et al., 1983).
Based on their smaller size, the description of the Stephens Island piopio was sometimes thought to be based on juvenile birds, but is now considered to be valid (Medway, 2004b). The assumption of a well-flying bird evolving into a distinct subspecies on the small (2.6 km2) island close (3.2 km) to the mainland seems hard to believe, but Stephens Island must have held a population of many hundred birds in 1894 (Medway, 2004a), and the piopio was apparently a reluctant flyer, not usually being found on offshore islands.
Subspecies
Two subspecies are recognized:
†T. c. capensis - (Sparrman, 1787): Formerly found in the South Island (of New Zealand)
Stephens Island piopio (†T. c. minor) - Fleming, JH, 1915: Formerly found on Stephens Island (New Zealand)
Description
This medium-sized bird was mostly olive-brown in colouration, with rufous wings and tail, and a speckled breast. The Stephens Island piopio was much smaller than the nominate race. The South Island piopio was considered to be one of the best song birds native to New Zealand.
Behaviour and ecology
Photo of a T. c. capensis nest
South Island piopios were omnivorous, and relatively unafraid of humans, as they have been recorded as taking scraps of food from campers. Lice of the genus Brueelia were found on the South Island piopio (Palma, 1999).
Status
The South Island piopio was once considered common in undergrowth forests of New Zealand's South Island, until 1863 when the population began to decline. The piopio continued to decline rapidly throughout the 1880s, mainly due to predation by cats and rats introduced to the island by humans, and some habitat destruction. By 1888 the bird was said to be the rarest in all of New Zealand, and by 1905 it was considered virtually extinct. The last confirmed specimen was shot at Oharu in 1902, although alleged sightings continued. For example, unconfirmed South Island piopio records exist from near Patea in 1923, between Gisborne and Wairoa on 7 May 1947, in Nelson district, January 1948 (all in Allison et al., 1949), and on 17 December 1947, at Lake Hauroko (Dunckley & Todd, 1949). The last supposed sighting was in 1963.
Stephens Island subspecies
The Stephens Island population became extinct, apparently in 1897, due to predation by feral cats which had multiplied to number in the hundreds by that time (see also Lyall's wren for a detailed chronology). The last specimen was taken on 7 January 1897, and there were none left by the end of 1898 (Medway, 2004a). Only 12 specimens of the Stephens Island bird exist today:
Staatliches Museum Dresden 16657, 16658, 16659, 16660, 16661; five spirit specimens purchased from Walter Buller's collection, received in 1899,
Natural History Museum, London 1903.12.10.2.; a female skin purchased from W. F. H. Rosenberg,
World Museum Liverpool B.20.12.01-24 (male) and B.20.12.01-24a (female); skins from Buller's collection purchased in 1901,
Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto Fleming collection 3915; a male skin (the type specimen),
Carnegie Museum, Pittsburgh CM 24753 (male) and CM 24754 (female); skins from Buller's collection (his numbers 194c and 194d) and
Übersee-Museum, Bremen 15080; a male skin collected by Hugo H. Schauinsland (the last record).
The last three are the only ones with reliable dates, having been taken in 1894, 1895 and 1897, respectively.
References
BirdLife International (2016). "Turnagra capensis". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T22705595A94026176. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22705595A94026176.en. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
Allison, J. V. et al. (1949): Classified summarised notes. New Zealand Bird Notes 3(4): 88–106. PDf fulltext
Dunckley, J. V. & Todd, E. M. (1949): Birds West of Waiau River. New Zealand Bird Notes 3(6): 163–164. PDF fulltext
Fleming, J. H. (1915): A new Turnagra from Stephens' Island, New Zealand. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 28: 121–124.
Medway, David G. (2004a): The land bird fauna of Stephens Island, New Zealand in the early 1890s, and the cause of its demise. Notornis 51(4): 201–211. PDF fulltext
Medway, David G. (2004b): Taxonomic status of the Stephens Island piopio (Turnagra capensis). Notornis 51(4): 231–232. PDF fulltext
Olson, Storrs L.; Parkes, K. C.; Clench, M. H. & Borecky, S. R. (1983): The affinities of the New Zealand passerine genus Turnagra. Notornis 30(4): 319–336. PDF fulltext
Palma, Ricardo L. (1999): Amendments and additions to the 1982 list of chewing lice (Insecta: Phthiraptera) from birds in New Zealand. Notornis 46(3): 373–387. PDF fulltext
Sparrman, Anders (1787): [Description of Turnagra capensis] In: Museum Carlsonianum, in quo novas et selectas aves, coloribus ad vivum brevique descriptiones illustratas 2(45), plate 45.
Further reading
Johansson, Ulf S.; Pasquet, Eric; Irestedt, Martin (2011). "The New Zealand Thrush: an extinct Oriole". PLOS One. 6 (9): e24317. Bibcode:2011PLoSO...624317J. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0024317. PMC 3170299. PMID 21931679.
Zuccon, Dario; Ericson, Per G.P. (2012). "Molecular and morphological evidences place the extinct New Zealand endemic Turnagra capensis in the Oriolidae". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 62 (1): 414–426. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2011.10.013. PMID 22056604.
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