Named By: | Andrew N. Iwaniuk, Storrs L. Olson & Helen F. James in 2009 |
Time Period: | Holocene 4050 BCE (Holocene) |
Location: | Hawaii, Kauai, Makauwahi Cave |
Size: | Unavailable |
Diet: | Insectivore |
Fossil(s): | Partial remains including skull and leg bones |
Classification: | | Chordata | Aves | Anseriformes | Anatidae | |
Talpanas lippa, the Kaua`i mole duck, is an extinct species of duck. It was first described by Andrew N. Iwaniuk, Storrs L. Olson, and Helen F. James in the journal Zootaxa in November 2009. It is the only known member of the genus Talpanas. It was endemic to the Hawaiian island of Kauai where the fossil remains were unearthed in the Makauwahi Cave, Maha'ulepu. The archaeological association of the bones is about 6000 years BP (around 4050 BCE).