This is a list of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha animals extinct in the Holocene that covers extinctions from the Holocene epoch, a geologic epoch that began about 11,650 years before present (about 9700 BCE) and continues to the present day.
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha is a British Overseas Territory located in the South Atlantic. The territory consists of Saint Helena, Ascension Island, and the archipelago of Tristan da Cunha (including Gough Island), all of volcanic origin.
Numerous animal species have disappeared from Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha as part of the ongoing Holocene extinction, driven by human activity.
Mammals (class Mammalia)
Carnivorans (order Carnivora)
Earless seals (family Phocidae) Locally extinct Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesSouthern elephant sealMirounga leoninaAntarcticMost recent remains in Saint Helena dated to historical times.Berg, A. A., Askew, M., Seersholm, F. V., Verry, A. J., Hoelzel, A. R., Welch, A., ... & de Bruyn, M. (2025). Postglacial recolonization of the Southern Ocean by elephant seals occurred from multiple glacial refugia. Global Change Biology, 31(3), e70101.
Birds (class Aves)
Cuckoos (order Cuculiformes)
Cuckoos (family Cuculidae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsSaint Helena cuckooNannococcyx psixSaint HelenaMost recent remains dated to around 1640.Lewis, C. A. (2008). The Late Glacial and Holocene avifauna of the island of St Helena, South Atlantic Ocean. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa, 63(2), 128-144. It likely became extinct when the island was deforested. Since the Saint Helena cuckoo was unusually small for a cuckoo, it likely parasited a small forest passerine species that is also extinct now.
Pigeons and doves (order Columbiformes)
Pigeons and doves (family Columbidae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesSaint Helena doveDysmoropelia dekarchiskosSaint HelenaMost recent remains dated to c. 12050 BCE, but speculated to have survived until settlement due a 1584 mention of doves in the island. It was the fourth largest pigeon ever (after the dodo, Rodrigues solitaire, and Viti Levu giant pigeon) and like them, likely flightless, which would have made it easy prey of humans or introduced mammals.Hume, J.P. (2017) Extinct Birds. Bloomsbury Publishing, 560 pages.
Rails and cranes (order Gruiformes)
Rails (family Rallidae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesSaint Helena railAphanocrex podarcesSaint HelenaMost recent remains dated to around 1640.Tristan moorhenGallinula nesiotisTristan da CunhaLast recorded in 1873. Became extinct due to hunting, predation by introduced rats, cats, and pigs, and habitat destruction by fire.Ascension crakeMundia elpenorAscension IslandLast recorded in 1656. It probably became extinct after the introduction of rats in the 18th century, or cats in 1815.Saint Helena crakeZapornia astrictocarpusSaint HelenaMost recent remains dated to around 1640.
Shorebirds (order Charadriiformes)
Gulls, terns, and skimmers (family Laridae) Locally extinct Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesKelp gullLarus dominicanusSouthern Hemisphere coastsPresent in Saint Helena before c. 1640. It is unknown if it bred on the island.
Albatrosses and petrels (order Procellariiformes)
Southern storm petrels (family Oceanitidae)
Locally extinct Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesWhite-faced storm petrelPelagodroma marinaCircumtropicalMost recent remains in Saint Helena dated to c. 1640.
Petrels and shearwaters (family Procellariidae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsOlson's petrelBulweria bifaxSaint HelenaMost recent remains at Sandy Bay dated to around 1640. It was replaced afterwards by Bulwer's petrel.Saint Helena petrelPterodroma rupinarumMost recent remains at Prosperous Bay dated to around 1640. The species nested on the ground and was vulnerable to predation by cats and other introduced mammals.Saint Helena shearwaterPuffinus pacificoidesKnown from fossils dated to around 14,000 years ago, but could have survived until the Holocene and become extinct when the climate ameliorated.
Locally extinct Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesSargasso shearwaterPuffinus lherminieriAtlantic Ocean and the Caribbean SeaMost recent remains in Saint Helena dated to c. 1640.
Boobies, cormorants, and relatives (order Suliformes)
Frigatebirds (family Fregatidae)
Locally extinct Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesLesser frigatebirdFregata arielCircumtropicalMost recent remains in Saint Helena dated to c. 1640.Great frigatebirdFregata minor
Boobies and gannets (family Sulidae) Locally extinct Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesRed-footed boobySula sulaOceanic circumglobal between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of CapricornMost recent remains in Saint Helena dated to c. 1640.
Pelicans, herons, and ibises (order Pelecaniformes)
Herons (family Ardeidae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsAscension night heronNycticorax olsoniAscension IslandLikely the "aponar" (an old name for the great auk) mentioned by André Thévet in 1555. It was flightless or a poor flyer and nested on the ground, making it vulnerable to hunting and predation by introduced mammals.
Hornbills and hoopoes (order Bucerotiformes)
Hoopoes (family Upupidae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesSaint Helena hoopoeUpupa antaiosSaint HelenaMost recent remains at Prosperous Bay dated to around 1640. It was flightless or a poor flyer, making it easy prey for introduced cats and rats.
Insects (class Insecta)
Dragonflies and damselflies (order Odonata)
Skimmers, perchers, and relatives (family Libellulidae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsSaint Helena darterSympetrum dilatatumSaint HelenaLast collected in 1963. The causes of extinction are unknown, but habitat destruction has been suggested.
Earwigs (order Dermaptera)
Striped earwigs (order Labiduridae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesSaint Helena earwigLabidura herculeanaSaint HelenaLast collected in 1967. Isolated exoskeleton pieces of individuals that were ingested by birds and spiders were found as late as 2014, but the large size and robustness of the species make it impossible to guess how recent they are. The earwig's habitat has been degraded by construction since it was last seen alive, while invasive predators like rats, mice, spiders, and the centipede Scolopendra morsitans have increased.
Beetles (order Coleoptera)
Ground beetles (family Carabidae) Scientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesAplothorax burchelliSaint HelenaLast collected in 1966-1967.Sota, T., Hori, M., Scholtz, C., Karagyan, G., Liang, H. B., Ikeda, H., & Takami, Y. (2020). The origin of the giant ground beetle Aplothorax burchelli on St Helena Island. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 131(1), 50-60.
Slugs and snails (class Gastropoda)
Order Stylommatophora
Family Achatinidae Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesChilonopsis blofeldiSaint HelenaLast seen in the 1870s.Chilonopsis exulatusChilonopsis helenaChilonopsis melanoidesLast recorded alive in 1878.https://europeanjournaloftaxonomy.eu/index.php/ejt/article/view/3007/13499#Great Saint Helena awl snailChilonopsis nonpareilDescribed from subfossil shells in 1875. It probably disappeared due to habitat modification caused by introduced goats, pigs, and rabbits, or predation by rats, mice, and the centipede Scolopendra morsitans.Chilonopsis subplicatusLast seen in the 1870s.Chilonopsis subtruncatusChilonopsis turtoniLast recorded alive around 1884-86. It was probably the last species within its genus to go extinct.https://europeanjournaloftaxonomy.eu/index.php/ejt/article/view/3007/13499#
Family Charopidae Scientific nameRangeCommentsHelenoconcha leptaleaSaint HelenaLast seen in the 1870s.Helenoconcha minutissimaHelenoconcha polyodonHelenoconcha pseustesHelenoconcha sexdentataHelenodiscus bilamellataHelenodiscus vernoniPseudohelenoconcha spurca
Family Pupillidae Scientific nameRangeCommentsPupilla obliquicostaSaint HelenaLast seen in the 1870s.
Whorl snails (family Vertiginidae) Scientific nameRangeCommentsCampolaemus perexilisSaint HelenaLast seen in the 1870s.
Plants (kingdom Plantae)
Ferns (class Polypodiopsida)
Wood ferns (family Dryopteridaceae) Scientific nameRangeCommentsDryopteris ascensionisSummit of Green Mountain, Ascension IslandLast recorded in 1889, with an unconfirmed sighting near Garden Cottage in 1976. Likely extinct due to competition with introduced invasive plants.https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/43920/2989932
Flowering plants (clade Angiospermae)
Sunflowers (family Asteraceae)
Scientific nameRangeCommentsCommidendrum gummifoliaCentral ridge of Saint HelenaPure individuals are apparently extinct, but possible hybrids survive at Peak Dale, and possibly the Deep Valley.https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/37856/97083299
Extinct in the wild Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesShe cabbage treeLachanodes arboreaSaint HelenaLast wild individual died in 2012. Declined due to deforestation.
Forget-me-nots (family Boraginaceae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsSaint Helena heliotropeHeliotropium pannifoliumCoastal lowlands of Saint HelenaOnly known from the holotype collected in Broad Gut in 1810. Likely eradicated by introduced feral goats grazing.https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/67379124/67379134
Euphorbias (family Euphorbiaceae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsStringwoodAcalypha rubrinervisPossibly the Central Ridge of Saint HelenaLast collected between 1855 and 1875.
Mallows (family Malvaceae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesSaint Helena ebonyTrochetiopsis melanoxylonLowland Saint HelenaLast recorded in 1771, with unconfirmed reports until 1816. Extinct due to overexploitation for wood, and predation by introduced feral goats.https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/30561/67372085
Extinct in the wild Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesSaint Helena redwoodTrochetiopsis erythroxylonUpper mid-altitude Saint HelenaLast wild individual in Peak Dale Gut died in the 1950s.
True grasses (family Poaceae) Scientific nameRangeCommentsSporobolus durusWeather Post, Ascension IslandLast recorded in 1886.
Buckthorns (family Rhamnaceae) Common nameScientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesSaint Helena oliveNesiota ellipticaCentral Ridge of Saint HelenaThe last known tree in the wild died in 1994, and the last seedlings cultivated from it died of a fungal infection in 2003.
Coffee trees and relatives (family Rubiaceae) Scientific nameRangeCommentsPicturesOldenlandia adscensionisGreen Mountain, Ascension IslandPossibly last recorded in 1985. Possibly extinct due to introduced predators like goats, sheep, rabbits, and rats, or competition with introduced plants.
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