The Labrador duck was the rare North American sea duck associated with the last preserved specimen collected in 1875.
The Labrador duck, Camptorhynchus labradorius, was already uncommon before European settlement. It bred in Labrador and northern Quebec, then migrated to sheltered coastal waters from New England to New Jersey. Only about 55 museum specimens are known today, helping make it one of the world’s rarest bird specimens.
The exact cause of its extinction remains uncertain. Hunting probably contributed, but the bird reportedly tasted poorly and was not highly prized by hunters. Egg collecting, feather collecting, and the decline of mussels and other shellfish in heavily developed coastal waters may also have played roles.
The last preserved bird was shot on Long Island in 1875, although a later reported sighting occurred in Elmira, New York, in 1878. That distinction explains why sources sometimes give different final dates. It was the first known endemic North American bird to disappear after the Columbian Exchange.