Weka (Gallirallus australis) beachcombs, Ulva Island, New Zealand
This rail, related to our coots and moorhens, is endemic to New Zealand.
It has lost the power of flight. Why? You only need flight to catch aerial prey or to avoid predators. The weka picks up invertebrates and fallen fruit from the ground. It has no need to escape predators, because on the oceanic islands of New Zealand there were no predators (until the very recent arrival of humans). Flying involves expending energy in building powerful flight muscles which the weka did not need.
However, now it faces threats from introduced stoats, cats and other carnivores and is classified as a threatened species with only a patchy distribution in New Zealand.
From a slide taken in 1996
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Weka (Gallirallus australis) beachcombs, Ulva Island, New Zealand
This rail, related to our coots and moorhens, is endemic to New Zealand.
It has lost the power of flight. Why? You only need flight to catch aerial prey or to avoid predators. The weka picks up invertebrates and fallen fruit from the ground. It has no need to escape predators, because on the oceanic islands of New Zealand there were no predators (until the very recent arrival of humans). Flying involves expending energy in building powerful flight muscles which the weka did not need.
However, now it faces threats from introduced stoats, cats and other carnivores and is classified as a threatened species with only a patchy distribution in New Zealand.
From a slide taken in 1996
211004 005