Holdaway et al.-Extinction of Finsch’s duck

Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand abstracts

Late Holocene extinction of Finsch’s duck (Chenonetta finschi), an endemic, possibly flightless, New Zealand duck

Richard N. Holdaway

Palaecol Research, P.O. Box 16 569, Christchurch, New Zealand. Email: piopio@paradise.net.nz

Martin D. Jones

Centre for Archaeological Research, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92 109, Auckland, New Zealand.

Nancy R. Beavan Athfield

Rafter Radiocarbon Laboratory, Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences, P.O. Box 31 312, Lower Hutt, New Zealand.

Abstract Finsch’s duck (Chenonetta finschi), an extinct, possibly flightless New Zealand endemic, was widely distributed and apparently abundant immediately before human settlement of New Zealand, but its bones have rarely been identified in archaeological sites. Its extinction has been variously attributed to habitat changes, predation by the introduced Pacific rat (Rattus exulans), and human predation. Discriminating between possible causes of its extinction hinges on determining the relative timing of phases of the extinction process and the arrival of rats and humans. Methodological problems of determining the time of extinction of fossil species are reviewed. Bayesian statistical analysis of a series of accelerator mass spectrometry ¹⁴C ages on gelatin from Finsch’s duck bones from non-cultural deposits suggests that the species began to decline before widespread Polynesian settlement and that it was much reduced in range and numbers by the time extensive human predation and habitat alteration began. Possible causes of its extinction after Polynesian settlement are discussed.

Keywords Finsch’s duck; Chenonetta finschi; extinction; Rattus exulans; predation

R01013 Received 30 July 2001; accepted 16 October 2002; published 26 November 2002
© Journal of The Royal Society of New Zealand, Volume 32, Number 4, December 2002, pp 629-651

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