Dromornis stirtoni: Australia’s Half-Tonne Bird, and Why It Is Not the Demon Duck
A half-tonne Australian bird related to ducks, which took more than a decade to reach adult size.
Pelagornis sandersi: A 6.4-Metre Wingspan Dug Out of an Airport
A 6.4-metre wingspan found under a South Carolina airport, and the largest flying bird yet described.
Adzebill: The 16-Kilogram Predator Whose Nearest Relatives Weigh 50 Grams
Two flightless New Zealand birds of 16 to 19 kg, extinct before 1500, whose closest living relatives weigh under 50 grams.
Himalayan Quail: A Sanctuary Named for a Bird Last Seen in 1876
The Himalayan quail has not been confirmed since December 1876, yet it is still listed as Critically Endangered, and in 1993 India created a wildlife sanctuary for it.
Crested Shelduck: Last Seen in 1964, and Still Not Declared Extinct
The crested shelduck was last confirmed in 1964 near Vladivostok and is still listed as Critically Endangered rather than Extinct. Three specimens, no nest ever found.
Piopio: Misnamed Twice, Misfiled for a Century, Gone by 1905
Both of the piopio’s scientific names record errors, and nobody could place the genus in a family until DNA answered it in 2012. Both species were gone by 1905.
ʻŌʻū: Last Seen in 1989, and Still Producing New Science
The oou was last seen on Kauai in 1989 and declared extinct in 2023. In October 2025 ancient DNA showed it had been interbreeding with the Lanai hookbill, another extinct honeycreeper.
Norfolk Island Kaka: The Last One Died in a Cage in London
Two penal colonies ate and caged the Norfolk Island kaka out of existence. The last one died in London around 1851. Half the genus Nestor is now extinct.
King Island Emu: The Last Two of Their Kind Died in a Paris Garden
The smallest emu ever measured, 44% below mainland size. Sealers wiped it off King Island by about 1805, but two live birds reached Paris and survived until 1822.
Wake Island Rail: The Bird a Besieged Garrison Ate to Extinction
The Wake Island rail lived on one Pacific atoll. The US Navy cut the Japanese garrison’s supply line, the men starved, and the flightless rail was eaten. Gone between 1942 and 1945.
