Notornis (English spelling) takahe

A bird of the Rallidae family in the order Grui in the class Aves. Approximately 60 centimeters in length. Similar to a purple-blue bird, its whole body is blue-purple with a strong green back. It has a very thick beak, flesh-colored beak and legs, and a red forehead plate. The males and females are the same color. Its wings are small and it cannot fly. A species endemic to New Zealand, it was thought to have become extinct by the end of the 19th century, but in 1948 it was confirmed that a small number of them still survived around Lake Te Anau, located at an altitude of 1,000 meters on New Zealand's South Island.

[Hiroyuki Morioka]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

鳥綱ツル目クイナ科の鳥。全長約60センチメートル。セイケイに似た鳥で、全身青紫色、背は緑色が強い。嘴(くちばし)は非常に太く、嘴と足は肉色、額板は赤色。雌雄は同色。翼は小さく、飛ぶことはできない。ニュージーランドの特産種で、19世紀末までに絶滅したと思われていたが、1948年、ニュージーランド南島の標高1000メートルの高地にあるテ・アナウ湖周辺に少数が生き残っていることが確認された。

［森岡弘之］

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