Rodrigues night heron


The Rodrigues night heron is an extinct species of heron formerly occurring on the Mascarene island of Rodrigues.

Description

It is known from subfossil bones and the 1708 description of Leguat as well as the 1726 report of Julien Tafforet. Leguat's description was as follows:
A traveler named M. Dubois, staying at the island from 1669 to 1672, described them as grey birds with white spots on each feather and green legs. However this could also refer to the dimorphic egret.

Behaviour and ecology

Both authors agree that this bittern-like bird, the size of a fat chicken or small egret, was mainly terrestrial, unwary, and only flew when chased, although even in that case they initially tried to escape by running. They apparently laid greenish eggs; one of their favorite foods was geckos, probably the Rodrigues day gecko as the other local species, the Rodrigues giant day gecko was nearly as long as the bird itself. Analysis of the fossil remains concluded that the bill of the species was very strong and that it was evolving towards flightlessness.
Many other species endemic to Rodrigues became extinct after humans arrived, and the island's ecosystem is heavily damaged. Before humans arrived, forests covered the island entirely, but very little remains today. The Rodrigues night heron lived alongside other recently extinct birds, such as the Rodrigues solitaire, Rodrigues parrot, Newton's parakeet, Rodrigues rail, Rodrigues owl, Rodrigues starling, and the Rodrigues pigeon. Extinct reptiles include the domed Rodrigues giant tortoise, the saddle-backed Rodrigues giant tortoise, and the Rodrigues day gecko.

Extinction

The bird appears to have been hunted to extinction in the mid-18th century. Pingré mentions in his report that no "bitterns" could be found on Rodrigues anymore in 1761.