Cuvier groan – Wikipedia

Dryolimnas cuvieri

The Cuvier groan ( Dryolimnas cuvieri ) is a kind of birds from the Rallidae family and the only living member of the genus Dryolimn . He does not migrate, not having the ability to fly. The species only has two subspecies, a third being extinguished. She lives in Madagascar, in several islands of the Seychelles archipelago and other surrounding islands and is not threatened.

The subspecies D. c. Aldabranus From the island of Aldabra, sometimes considered as a distinct species, can be called Aldabra groan, and Tyityo in Creole. In Tsimihety, Malagasy dialect, he is named Kitsiabe na Tsikoza ^{[ first ]} .

A subspecies in the past present on Aldabra disappeared 136,000 years ago when elevating sea level; However 36,000 years later, following the withdrawal of the waters, the birds of the Malagasy subspecies again colonized Aldabra, to evolve and become the contemporary subspecies D. c. Aldabranus , presenting the same specific features as the anterior subspecies on Aldabra ^{[ 2 ]} ; We then speak of iterative desectinction.

The Cuvier rail measures between 30 and 33 cm long. Males weigh from 145 to 218 g and females from 138 to 223 grams ^{[ 3 ]} .

It is entirely brown chestnut, except for a small white bib. It is quite slender, with long legs and fine fingers. The neck is also long, as well as the right, straight and dark. The latter is pink at its base in females, while in males this part is darker and matte ^{[ 4 ]} .

It is the last species of birds cannot steal from the Western Indian Ocean Islands ^{[ 5 ] , [ 6 ] , [ 7 ]} And often holds its atrophied wings along his body.

The cuvier groan is omnivorous, having a preference for insects ^{[ 8 ]} . It also feeds on molluscs ( Melanoides , LITORINA ) and crustaceans ( Ocypode cordimanus ), as well as eggs or small turtles, like those of the Green Tortoise ( Chelonia mydas ) ^{[ 3 ] , [ 9 ]} .

Geographic distribution [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

This species lives in Comoros, Madagascar, Mayotte and Seychelles. Its distribution area is around 591,000 km ² According to Birdlife International, for a population including in 2009 between 5,100 and 7,500 individuals ^{[ ten ]} .

Dryolimnas Cuvieri Aldabranus was reintroduced in 1999 on Picard Island from Malabar Island, another island of the Aldabra Atoll. Wild cats, cause of his disappearance, having been eradicated ^{[ 11 ]} .

Habitat [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

He lives in several varieties of habitats, such as mangroves, densely planted from Pemphis Acidula , open busy areas as well as pebble and sand beaches ^{[ 8 ]} .

The species was initially described in 1845 under the protonyme of Rallus civier , by the French ornithologist Jacques Pucheran ^{[ twelfth ] , [ 13 ]} . It was also classified in the genre Canirallus ^{[ 14 ]} Before joining the genre Dryolimn .

Synonyms [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

Several synonyms are identified, the species having been described several times by different authors ^{[ 15 ]} :

• Rallns Lesson
• Rallus civier Pucheran
• Eulabeomis gnaris Gray
• Rougetius bernieri Bonaparte
• Rougetius gnaris Bonaparte
• Oanirallus kioloides Pucheran
• Rallus Bernieri Grandidier, 1868
• Calamodromus bernieri Heine & rich

Subspecies [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

According to Avibase, three subspecies are recognized ^{[ twelfth ]} :

• D. C. civier (Pucheran, 1845), the typical subspecies;
• † D. c. Abbotti (Ridgway, 1894), de protonyme Rogetius Abbotti , was endemic to the island of the Assumption before its extinction in the beginning of XX ^{It is} century ;
• D. c. Aldabranus (Günther, 1879), de Protonyms Rallns gnaris Aldabrana , is only found on Aldabra, and considered by certain sources as a full -fledged species, Dryolimnas Aldabranus .

On the whole of its territory, the species does not know any digital decline greater than 30% in 10 years or in three generations, and is therefore classified by the IUCN in LC (minor concern) ^{[ 16 ] , [ ten ]} . The Cuvier rail has only serious predator only the domestic cat, imported to fight rats ^{[ 17 ]} , but which made disappear the bird in the south and west of the Seychelles archipelago ^{[ 8 ]} .

Taxonomic references [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

external links [ modifier | Modifier and code ]