Chatham Islands Raven
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Prehistoric
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| Corvus moriorum (Forbes, 1892) |
The Chatham Islands Raven was native to the Chatham Islands (New Zealand). Another closely related raven species occurred on the North Island and South Island of New Zealand, namely the New Zealand Raven Corvus antipodum (Forbes, 1893).
Chatham Islands raven was significant larger than the New Zealand Raven, and probably the world's fourth- or fifth-largest passerine. They had long, broad bills that were not as arched as those of some of the Hawaiian Crows (Corvus hawaiiensis).
Remains of New Zealand Ravens are most common in coastal sites on the Chatham Islands. On the coast, it may have frequented the seal and penguin colonies or fed in the intertidal zone, as does the Tasmanian Forest Raven Corvus tasmanicus. It may also have depended on fruit, like the New Caledonian Crow Corvus moneduloides, but it is difficult to understand why a fruit eater would have been most common in coastal forest and shrubland when fruit was distributed throughout the forest.
[edit] References
- Gill, B. J. 2003. Osteometry and systematics of the extinct New Zealand ravens (Aves: Corvidae: Corvus). Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 1: 43-58.
- Worthy, T.H., Holdaway R.N., 2002, The lost world of the Moa: Prehistoric Life of New Zealand, Indiana University Press, Bloomington. ISBN 0-253-34034-9.
