Tristan moorhen facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Tristan moorhen |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Tristan moorhen | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Gallinula
|
| Species: |
nesiotis
|
The Tristan moorhen was a special type of bird that could not fly. It used to live only on a faraway island called Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic Ocean. Sadly, this bird is now extinct, meaning there are no more of them left. It looked a lot like the Gough moorhen, which lives on Gough Island, another island nearby.
Contents
About the Tristan Moorhen
The Tristan moorhen was a kind of rail, which is a family of birds often found near water. What made this bird special was that it could not fly. This is common for birds that live on islands where there are no predators.
It was very similar to the Gough moorhen. Gough Island is about 395 miles (635 km) southeast of Tristan da Cunha.
Why the Tristan Moorhen Disappeared
Long ago, there were many Tristan moorhens. But by the late 1800s, they became very rare and then disappeared completely. This happened for a few reasons:
- People hunted them.
- New animals like rats, cats, and pigs were brought to the island. These animals hunted the moorhens and their eggs.
- Fires destroyed the places where the moorhens lived and found food. This is called habitat destruction.
Only a few stuffed Tristan moorhens are left in museums today. One of them is at Harvard University.
A New Moorhen on Tristan da Cunha
In 1956, a different kind of moorhen was brought to Tristan da Cunha. This was the Gough moorhen (G. comeri), which is very similar to the extinct Tristan moorhen.
Scientists have studied the DNA of both the old Tristan moorhens and the Gough moorhens. They found that these two types of birds are very closely related. Some scientists even think they might be different types of the same species. This means the moorhens living on Tristan da Cunha today are like close cousins to the original Tristan moorhen.
See also
In Spanish: Gallineta de Tristán de Acuña para niños
