Wikijunior:Extinct Birds/New Zealand Quail
The New Zealand quail (Coturnix novaezelandiae) is also called the koreke and has been extinct since 1875.
Description
[edit | edit source]They are brown with some white. Females were slightly bigger than males.
Distribution
[edit | edit source]They were found in New Zealand. They were mainly found in grassland. Their population increased when the Maori arrived, since they destroyed some of the forest, hence creating grassland.
Diet
[edit | edit source]We do not really know what they ate, though we think they were herbivores. We believe they ate flowers, seeds and leaves.
Extinction
[edit | edit source]They became extinct due to grasslands being made into farmland and hunting.
Song
[edit | edit source]Their song sounded like 'twit, twit, twit, twee-twit’.