Notornis, 23 (1), 44-60
Article Type: Paper
Recent research has shown that there are 19 extant types of New Zealand birds collected on Captain James Cook’s three voyages of circumnavigation. Of these 9 are type paintings, the species concerned being Tadorna variegata, Anas superciliosa superciliosa, Aythya novaeseelandiae, Sterna striata, Chalcites lucidus lucidus, Xenicus longipes longipes, Anthus novaeseelandiae novaeseelandiae, Finschia novaseelandiae and Mohoua ocrocephala. The remaining 10 are type specimens, the species concerned being Stictocarbo punctatus punctatus, Falco novaeseelandiae, Nestor meridionalis meridionalis, Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae novaezelandiae, Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae novaeseelandiae, Callaeas cinerea cinerea and Turnagra capensis capensis. The type paintings are preserved in the Zoology Library of the British Museum (Natural History) and the type specimens in the Merseyside County Museum at Liverpool, the Naturhistoriska riksmuseet at Stockholm, and the Naturhistorisches Museum at Vienna.
A brief account is given of some aspects of the history of bird specimens collected on the voyages and the history of the New Zealand type specimens is more specifically traced. Appropriate references are made to J. R. Forster’s as yet unpublished journal kept by him on the Resolution on Cook’s second voyage, and other relevant literature is referred to.