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Kosrae crake

Kosrae crake is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Kosrae crake rather than just read about it. In short: The Kosrae crake or Kusaie Island crake (Zapornia monasa), sometimes also stated as Kittlitz's rail, is an extinct bird from the family Rallidae. It occurred on the island of Kosrae and perhaps on Ponape in the south-western Pacific which belong both to the Caroline Islands.

Kosrae crake — main illustration
Kosrae crake — illustration

Key takeaways

  • Kosrae crake belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
  • Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
  • Connect Kosrae crake to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
  • Reproduce the core statement of Kosrae crake from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Kosrae crake or Kusaie Island crake (Zapornia monasa), sometimes also stated as Kittlitz's rail, is an extinct bird from the family Rallidae. It occurred on the island of Kosrae and perhaps on Ponape in the south-western Pacific which belong both to the Caroline Islands. Its preferred habitat were coastal swamps and marshland covered with taro plants (Colocasia esculenta).

Description It was discovered in 1827 by Heinrich von Kittlitz. Von Kittlitz described its plumage as general black with bluish gloss. The quills were more brownish. The chin and the middle of the throat were brown. The surface of its tail were brownish-black. The undertail coverts exhibit white spots. The inner wing coverts were brownish and were spotted with white. The outer edged of the first primary was dull brown. Eyes, legs and feet had a reddish hue. The bill was black. Its size was about 18 cm. Controversial data exists as to its ability to fly. X-ray measurements of the carpometacarpi lead to the assumption that it was flightless. However its native name nay-tay-mai-not which means "the one who lands in the taro plot" might imply that the ability to fly was present.

Extinction The Kosrae crake is only known by two specimens taken by von Kittlitz in December 1827 in the swamps of Kosrae. The two skins are now in the Russian Academy of Sciences in Saint Petersburg. The story of its extinction is similar to the vanishing of the Kosrae starling (another extinct species from Kosrae). Even in 1828 von Kittlitz described this bird as uncommon. German ornithologist Otto Finsch failed to find this bird on his expedition in 1880 and also the Whitney South Seas Expedition of the American Museum of Natural History in 1931 remained unsuccessful on a survey after that species. They became apparently victims of rats which had overrun Kosrae after they were able to escape from missionary and whaling vessels which were careened on the beach of Kosrae.

References

Further reading Greenway, James (1967): Extinct and Vanishing Birds of the World, Dover Publications Inc. New York, ISBN 0-486-21869-4 Errol Fuller (2000). Extinct Birds, ISBN 0-8160-1833-2 Flannery, Tim & Schouten, Peter (2001). A Gap in Nature: Discovering the World's Extinct Animals, Atlantic Monthly Press, New York. ISBN 0-87113-797-6. David Day (1981). The Doomsday Book of Animals, Ebury Press, London, ISBN 0-670-27987-0

Illustrations

Kosrae crake illustration
Kosrae crake: Illustration of Baillon's Crake and Kosrae Crake.
Illustration of Baillon's Crake and Kosrae Crake.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Kosrae crake

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Kosrae crake claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Kosrae crake before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Kosrae crake ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Kosrae crake

In research
Kosrae crake appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry
Engineering practice reuses Kosrae crake in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom
Kosrae crake is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Bird extinctions since 1500, Birds described in 1858, Birds of Micronesia, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life
Look for Kosrae crake outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Kosrae crake in 20 minutes

  1. Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
  2. Close the page and write down what Kosrae crake means in your own words.
  3. Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
  4. Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
  5. Explain Kosrae crake out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kosrae crake in simple terms?

The Kosrae crake or Kusaie Island crake (Zapornia monasa), sometimes also stated as Kittlitz's rail, is an extinct bird from the family Rallidae. It occurred on the island of Kosrae and perhaps on Ponape in the south-western Pacific which belong both to the Caroline Islands.

Why does Kosrae crake matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Kosrae crake?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Kosrae crake.

Tags

  • Bird extinctions since 1500
  • Birds described in 1858
  • Birds of Micronesia
  • Endemic birds of Kosrae
  • Extinct flightless birds
  • IUCN Red List extinct species
  • Taxa named by Heinrich von Kittlitz
  • Zapornia

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