What did Haast's eagle look like?

Discussion about the evolution, relationships, and naming of New Zealand birds
andrewcrossland
Posts: 2132
Joined: Mon Dec 14, 2009 2:29 pm
Location: Christchurch

Re: What did Haast's eagle look like?

Postby andrewcrossland » Thu Jan 19, 2017 11:17 pm

I prefer Harpagornis as the common English name too, but I also don't mind Haasts Eagle. Haast also wrote that he saw large eagles in life in the Southern Alps. He was a good guy so its fitting that the species be named after him. Buller on the other hand was a nasty egotistical old bugger (mainly because he ripped off my Cantabrian hero - Potts), so lets remove his name from the various English common and scientific names its associated with? "Hazar hazar"!
Ian Southey
Posts: 1100
Joined: Tue Sep 08, 2009 5:45 pm

Re: What did Haast's eagle look like?

Postby Ian Southey » Mon Feb 11, 2019 7:14 am

Some genetic work on our extinct raptors https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/a ... 0318306328 re-iterates the relationship of Haast's Eagle with Little eagle and also shows, for the first time I think, that Eyles' Harrier is a giant derivative of the Australian Spotted Harrier rather than the Swamp Harrier. I have not seen the full paper however...

Ian

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