Réunion ibis

Réunion ibis.
The Réunion ibis (Threskiornis solitarius) is an extinct bird formerly endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Réunion. Subfossil remains were found in 1974, and it was formally described in 1987. Early travellers described a white bird on Réunion that flew with difficulty, later assumed to refer to a white relative of the dodo. The ibis subfossil suggested that the tales referred to this bird instead. The ibis was mainly white, although its wing tips and plume feathers on its rear were black. The neck and legs were long, and the beak was relatively straight and short for an ibis. Similar to its extant relatives but more robust, it was about 65 cm (25 in) long. Subfossil wing-bones indicate that it had reduced flight capabilities. The diet of the ibis was invertebrates foraged from the soil. In the 17th century it lived only in mountainous areas, perhaps due to predation by introduced animals and hunting by humans for its tasty meat. These factors had driven the ibis to extinction by the early 18th century.