Posted 13 Aug 2009

A Tasman booby – a bird thought to have been long extinct – has been found living in Tasmania by scientists.

However, the story is not as straightforward as it seems, reports National Geographic. A ‘masked’ bird which conservationists thought was a different species for years has now been identified as the Tasman booby.

Fossil experts in past decades unwittingly compared the bones of the female Tasman booby to those of a male booby, which is masked. However, they did not take into account the significantly different statures of the birds and assumed they were two different species.

A comparison of their DNA confirmed that the booby is still very much alive.

Tammy Steeves of the University of Canterbury in New Zealand – the leader of the study which made the discovery – told the magazine: "Imagine my surprise when we found that they were identical. It’s a rare treat to uncover such a definitive result."

Boobies also exist in another popular gap year destination, the Galapagos Islands. The area is home to three types – blue-footed, red-footed and masked boobies.

Category: Australasia