Kingdom Animalia Class Aves Family Megapodiidae Scientific name Megapodius molistructor | Phylum Chordata Order Galliformes Genus Megapodius Rank Species | |
Similar Megapodius, Galliformes, Marquesas swamphen, Antillean cave rail, Tongan megapode | ||
The pile-builder megapode (Megapodius molistructor) is an extinct species of megapode. The subfossil remains were found by Jean-Christophe Balouet and Storrs L. Olson in the Pindai Caves of New Caledonia. Its remains have also been found on Tonga.
Contents
Description
With a weight of 3.5 kg, Megapodius molistructor was heavier than all existing Megapodius. On Tonga, it was the largest ground-dwelling bird species. The fossil material consists of a left tarsometatarsus, a complete left scapula, a half right scapula, a proximal end left ulna, a fragment of the right femur, several ungual phalanxes, an anterior end right scapula, a proximal end right ulna, a distal left ulna, a distal end left ulna proximal, and a half right femur.
Extinction
When the early settlers of the Lapita culture arrived in Tonga at about 1500 BC they found only marine species like sea turtles and giant forms of terrestrial birds like megapodes, doves, and rails. The hunting of these bird species for food led to their rapid extinction. In New Caledonia the giant megapode might have survived into historic times. William Anderson, a naturalist and surgeon's mate at the HMS Resolution during James Cook's second South Sea voyage, described a bird from New Caledonia with bare legs, which he named Tetrao australis. Considering that all Tetrao species have feathered legs, Anderson's bird might well have been a megapode.