Madagascar Fody distribution, type locality circled
Introduction
Linnaeus (1766) briefly descriped the Madagascar Fody, based on the longer description in Brisson 1760. Mathurin Jacques Brisson, a French zoologist, gave the names "Le Cardinal de Madagascar" (French) and Cardinalis madagascariensis (Latin). Brisson's painting is very poor, but his text is extensive, so there is no doubt about the species he was referring to.
Brisson noted that the Madagascar Fody originated from Madagascar, from where they were sent to RAF de Reaumur by Pierre Poivre, the administrator of Mauritius and Reunion. Poivre travelled to Madagascar in 1756 (Stresemann 1952) where he collected many bird specimens for de Reaumur.
The Madagascar Fody was first illustrated by Etienne de Flacourt, French governor of Madagascar. He wrote a book of the natural history, culture and history of southern Madagascar in 1658, including line drawings of some of the fauna and flora. He called the fody "Foulimene", and this is probably the first illustration (although a poor one) of any weaver species to appear in print.
Flacourt wrote about the fody as being captured by the locals because it was a pest on the rice crops, and he thought them to be beautiful due to their scarlet plumage.
Poivre's type specimens did not survive (Stresemann 1952), but the painting of Brisson serves as a type.
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