Manuherikia (bird) explained

Manuherikia is a genus of extinct species of ducks from the Miocene of New Zealand. It was described from fossil material of the Saint Bathans Fauna, in the lower Bannockburn Formation of the Manuherikia Group, found by the Manuherikia River in the Central Otago region of the South Island. The genus name comes from the name of the geological formation in which the fossils were found and, ultimately, from the Manuherikia River and its valley.^[1]

Species

Described species are:

• Manuherikia lacustrina Worthy et al., 2007 – Described from a complete left humerus collected from a Saint Bathans Fauna site on Home Hills Station, it was about the same size as an Australasian shoveler. It is the most abundant of the birds found in the Manuherikia Group deposits. Examination of its relatively plentiful remains indicate that, structurally, it was a specialist diver. Its specific epithet refers to the lacustrine source of the sediments in which its remains were found.^[1]
• Manuherikia minuta Worthy et al., 2007 – Described from a complete left humerus collected from a Saint Bathans Fauna site on Home Hills Station, it was a very small duck, being slightly smaller than a pink-eared duck. Its specific epithet refers to its extremely small size.^[1]
• Manuherikia douglasi Worthy et al., 2008 – Described from a complete right humerus and four ulnae collected from a Saint Bathans Fauna site near the Manuherikia River, it was the largest of the three species in its genus. Its specific epithet honours geologist Barry Douglas, the original discoverer of bird fossils in the Manuherikia Group sediments.^{[2] [3] [4]}
• Manuherikia primadividua Worthy et al., 2021 – Described from many limb bones and parts of the skull collected from the Saint Bathans Fauna site near the Manuherikia River.^[5]

Notes and References

1. Worthy TH, Tennyson AJ, Jones C, McNamara JA, Douglas BJ . 2007 . Miocene waterfowl and other birds from central Otago, New Zealand . Journal of Systematic Palaeontology . 5 . 1 . 1–39 . 10.1017/S1477201906001957. 2440/43360 . 85230857 . free .
2. Web site: Douglas' duck . 2014-06-01 . C.M. . Miskelly . New Zealand Birds Online . 2013 .
3. Book: Checklist of the Birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica . Gill, B.J. (Convener, OSNZ Checklist Committee) . 2010 . Fourth edition . Te PaPa Press in association with the Ornithological Society of New Zealand . Wellington. 978-1-877385-59-9 . 324 .
4. Worthy TH, Tennyson AJ, Hand SJ, Scofield RP . 2010 . A new species of the diving duck Manuherikia and evidence for geese (Aves: Anatidae: Anserinae) in the St Bathans Fauna (Early Miocene), New Zealand. Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand . 38. 2. 97–114. 10.1080/03014220809510549. 84743704 .
5. Worthy. Trevor H.. Scofield. R. Paul . Salisbury. Steven W.. Hand. Suzanne J.. De Pietri. Vanesa L.. Blokland. Jacob C. . Archer . Michael . 2021. A new species of Manuherikia (Aves: Anatidae) provides evidence of faunal turnover in the St Bathans fauna, New Zealand . Geobios . 70 . en . 87–107 . 10.1016/j.geobios.2021.08.002. 245157909 .