Réunion Shelduck
Encyclopedia
The Réunion Shelduck or Kervazo's Egyptian Goose (Alopochen kervazoi) is an extinct species of goose
from Réunion
. It was a close relative of the Egyptian Goose
and was about the same size. There is only one description remaining, that of Dubois made in 1674. He merely mentions that they were similar to European geese but smaller, with the bill and feet being red. Apart from that, the species is only known from brief reports and subfossil
bones.
complained of unsustainable hunting. The last record of the species is a 1709 listing of de la Merveille who stated that ducks and geese occurred "in quantity", but as Feuilley had not listed waterfowl in his 1705 catalogue of Réunion's animals, de la Merveille's record is obviously based on obsolete hearsay information. Thus, the last record of the species appears to be the report of Père Bernardin in 1687. The species probably became extinct during the 1690s.
Goose
The word goose is the English name for a group of waterfowl, belonging to the family Anatidae. This family also includes swans, most of which are larger than true geese, and ducks, which are smaller....
from Réunion
Réunion
Réunion is a French island with a population of about 800,000 located in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, about south west of Mauritius, the nearest island.Administratively, Réunion is one of the overseas departments of France...
. It was a close relative of the Egyptian Goose
Egyptian Goose
The Egyptian Goose is a member of the duck, goose and swan family Anatidae. It is in the shelduck subfamily Tadorninae, and is the only extant member of the genus Alopochen...
and was about the same size. There is only one description remaining, that of Dubois made in 1674. He merely mentions that they were similar to European geese but smaller, with the bill and feet being red. Apart from that, the species is only known from brief reports and subfossil
Subfossil
Subfossil refers to remains whose fossilization process is not complete, either for lack of time or because the conditions in which they were buried were not optimal for fossilization....
bones.
Extinction
Waterfowl on Réunion were overhunted. As early as 1667, François MartinFrançois Martin
François Martin was the first Governor General of Pondicherry. He founded Pondicherry, the future capital of French India in 1674. He was Commissioner of French East India Company before holding this post and was preceded by François Baron and succeeded by Pierre Dulivier. There is a street named...
complained of unsustainable hunting. The last record of the species is a 1709 listing of de la Merveille who stated that ducks and geese occurred "in quantity", but as Feuilley had not listed waterfowl in his 1705 catalogue of Réunion's animals, de la Merveille's record is obviously based on obsolete hearsay information. Thus, the last record of the species appears to be the report of Père Bernardin in 1687. The species probably became extinct during the 1690s.