Sardinian Pika

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iSardinian Pika[1]
Conservation status
Extinct  (late 1700s)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Lagomorpha Family: Prolagidae Gureev, 1964 Genus: Prolagus Pomel, 1853 Species: P. sardus
Binomial name
Prolagus sardus (Wagner, 1832)

The Sardinian Pika (Prolagus sardus) was a pika native to the Mediterranean islands of Sardinia and Corsica until its extinction in the late 1700s or early 1800s. It was described by early Sardinian authors as "a giant rabbit with no tail", and it is believed that the Nuragici, the ancient peoples of Sardinia, viewed them as a delicacy. It is the only animal belonging to the genus Prolagus; the Corsican Pika (formerly Prolagus corsicanus) is now considered to be conspecific with this species.

Some people believe that the Sardinian Pika still lives in the "wild" interior of Sardinia, and many others believe that it went extinct much more recently than scientific estimates. There are occasionally sightings of this pika, but so far none of them has been verified.

[edit] References

1. ^ Hoffmann, Robert S., Andrew T. Smith (November 16, 2005). Wilson, D. E., and Reeder, D. M. (eds): Mammal Species of the World, 3rd edition, Johns Hopkins University Press, 193-194. ISBN 0-801-88221-4.
2. ^ Lagomorph Specialist Group (1996). Prolagus sardus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 06 May 2006.