Great Bustard!

I must confess, I don't spend much time thinking about extinct or even endangered species of animals. Do you?

I say, I say, Great Bustard's the name, jolly good, what?

I thought this bird was such a handsome fella - he made me think of a British Colonel stationed in India with that fierce eye and that enormous 'tache - so I snapped his photo.  Turns out he's not extinct, only endangered.  This poor guy was shot down in his prime, apparently, as the whiskers only sprout when they are in their breeding season.  Kinda sad, when you think about it.

I also snapped part of the text next to his display and so can also tell you about the Kakapo, in critical danger with only 131 members left - and all given names.  Personally, I think Kakapo is a pretty good name, too.

This is Felix.  Why does he remind me of
Barry Manilow?

And finally, we come to the Great Auk - all gone, but not forgotten.  He makes me think of Alice in Wonderland or something, and sure enough, these creatures have appeared in children's literature, though Lewis Carroll's books are not listed. 

Well, that's my public service announcement for this week.  Don't go killing anything unusual, you hear, not even for your museum!  One day, soon enough, there will only be the rats and the cockroaches left...