Extinct species of bird came back from the dead, scientists find

[Eugene]

Source: CNN

Extinct species of bird came back from the dead, scientists find

By Rob Picheta, CNN
Updated 1600 GMT (0000 HKT) May 10, 2019

(CNN) — A previously extinct species of bird returned from the dead, reclaiming the island it previously lived on and re-evolving itself back into existence, scientists have said.

The white-throated rail colonized the Aldabra Atoll in the Indian Ocean and evolved to become flightless, before being completely wiped out when the island disappeared below the sea around 136,000 years ago.

But researchers found similar fossils from before and after that event, showing that the chicken-sized bird re-appeared when sea levels fell again a few thousand years later, re-colonized the island and again lost the ability to fly.

The flightless rail can be found on Aldabra to this day.

The extremely rare process is known as iterative evolution -- the repeated evolution of a species from the same ancestor at different times in history.

-snip-

Read more: https://edition.cnn.com/2019/05/10/africa/white-throated-rail-extinction-scli-intl-scn/index.html

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Related: Repeated evolution of flightlessness in Dryolimnas rails (Aves: Rallidae) after extinction and recolonization on Aldabra (Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society)

[mahina]

1. I wonder if there might be a less unlikely reason.

Reintroduction from another area or something. Maybe it wasn’t always flightless. Just a thought.

[mopinko]

2. that was the point.

the original ancestor flew back, recolonized, and again lost it's flight.

[mahina]

4. Ok

[dixiegrrrrl]

3. I'd like to know how many times they have found examples of iterative evolution.

since the term exists, it must have had an example to apply it to.

[Bongo Prophet]

5. Here is a very brief list of examples

Not very specific, but might be a start:

http://www.geowords.com/histbookpdf/f21.pdf

[dixiegrrrrl]

6. Now that is one of the things that make DU so great.

Thank you for providing this.