The Marianne white-eye (''Zosterops semiflavus''), also known as Seychelles chestnut-sided white-eye or Seychelles yellow white-eye, is an extinct

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of small bird in the

white-eye The white-eyes are a family, Zosteropidae, of small passerine birds native to tropical, subtropical and temperate Sub-Saharan Africa, southern and eastern Asia, and Australasia. White-eyes inhabit most tropical islands in the Indian Ocean, ...

family.

Taxonomy

Edward Newton Sir Edward Newton (10 November 1832 – 25 April 1897) was a British colonial administrator and ornithologist. He was born at Elveden Hall, Suffolk the sixth and youngest son of William Newton (MP for Ipswich), William Newton, MP. He was the ...

described it as a full species ''Zosterops semiflava'' in 1867, though subsequently it was considered a subspecies of the Mayotte white-eye. After a 2006 study showed that the Marianne white-eye is more closely related to the

Karthala white-eye The Karthala white-eye (''Zosterops mouroniensis''), also known as the Mount Karthala white-eye, Grand Comore white-eye, or Comoro white-eye, is a species of bird in the family Zosteropidae. As suggested by its name, it is endemic to '' Philippia ...

from

Grande Comore Grande Comore (; ) is an island in Comoros off the coast of Africa. It is the largest island in the Comoros nation. Most of its population is of the Comorian ethnic group. Its population is about 316,600. The island's capital is Moroni, which i ...

and the white-eyes from the

Mascarenes The Mascarene Islands (, ) or Mascarenes or Mascarenhas Archipelago is a group of islands in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar consisting of islands belonging to the Republic of Mauritius as well as the French department of Réunion. Their na ...

, the

IOC The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based in L ...

restored it to a full species. The IUCN recognized it as full species in 2016.

Description

It reached a size of , the wing length was , the length of the tail was and the length of the culmen . It was generally greenish yellow with chestnut-coloured flanks and a conspicuous white eye-ring. The forehead and a line above the eyes were yellow. The top of the head and the back were yellow olive. The wings and the tail were black and the underparts were pale yellow. It was similar in appearance to the Mayotte race of the

Malagasy white-eye The Malagasy white-eye (''Zosterops maderaspatanus'') is a species of bird in the white-eye family, Zosteropidae. Found in Madagascar and Seychelles, its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical moist low ...

(''Zosterops maderaspatanus mayottensis''). Nothing is known of its ecology.

Distribution and habitat

It is known with certainty only from the small granitic islet of

Marianne Island Marianne Island is a small granitic island of the Seychelles. in size, it is located 3.8 km ESE of Félicité Island. The island was a former coconut plantation, and on the western side of the island is a long beach. The southern tip of Mar ...

in the

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (; Seychellois Creole: ), is an island country and archipelagic state consisting of 155 islands (as per the Constitution) in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, ...

about east of

La Digue La Digue is the third most populated island of the Seychelles, and fourth largest by land area, lying east of Praslin and west of Felicite Island. In size, it is the fourth-largest granitic island of Seychelles after Mahé, Praslin, and Silho ...

. Reports that it also occurred on

Praslin Praslin () is the second largest island (38.5 km2) of the Inner Seychelles, lying northeast of Mahé, Seychelles, Mahé. Praslin has a population of around 7,533 people and comprises two administrative districts: Baie Sainte Anne and Grand ...

Silhouette Island Silhouette Island lies northwest of Mahé, Seychelles, Mahé in the Seychelles. It is the third largest Granitic Seychelles, granitic island in the Seychelles. It has an area of 20.1 km2 and has a population of 200, mostly workers on the ...

and Mahé are unconfirmed. Due to the

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

through agricultural development it apparently became extinct between 1870 and 1900 (according to

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

around 1888). An expedition in 1940 led by Irish zoologist Desmond Vesey-Fitzgerald failed to find it. There is one specimen in the

Natural History Museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history scientific collection, collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, Fungus, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleo ...

in London.

References

* Greenway, James C. (1967): ''Extinct and Vanishing Birds of the World'' * Luther, Dieter (2005): ''Die ausgestorbenen Vögel der Welt'' {{Taxonbar, from=Q1766876 Birds described in 1867 Taxa named by Edward Newton Bird extinctions since 1500 Birds of Seychelles Extinct birds of Indian Ocean islands Zosterops

† A dagger, obelisk, or obelus is a typographical mark that usually indicates a footnote if an asterisk has already been used. The symbol is also used to indicate death (of people) or extinction (of species or languages). It is one of the mo ...