The Zoochat Photographic Guide to Rails and allies

RECENTLY-EXTINCT RAIL GENERA



Historically-extinct genera:
(Genera which became extinct after European discovery)


Aphanocrex
Saint Helena Crake Aphanocrex podarces - St. Helena Island (Atlantic Ocean); not recorded in life (known only from skeletal remains) but the island was first discovered by Europeans in 1502 and had no previous human population so the species became extinct after this date, probably due to hunting and the introduction of predatory mammals.
[Has also been placed in the extant genus Atlantisia, e.g. on Cornell's Birds of the World website, and Atlantisia has been shown in genetic studies to actually be embedded within the genus Laterallus].


Aphanapteryx
Mauritius Red Rail Aphanapteryx bonasia - Mauritius (Indian Ocean); last recorded in 1693 - appearance known in life only by early paintings and descriptions.


Cabalus
Chatham Islands Rail Cabalus modestus - Chatham Islands (New Zealand); first recorded in 1872 and extinct before 1900, and is known from collected specimens (34 of which still exist in museums).
[Clearly better placed in the extant genus Gallirallus but this depends on how that genus is split].


Erythromachus
Rodrigues Rail Erythromachus leguati - Rodrigues (Indian Ocean); extinct between 1750 and 1760 - appearance known in life only by early paintings and descriptions.


Mundia
Ascension Crake Mundia elpenor - Ascension Island (Atlantic Ocean); the only record of a living bird was in 1656; extinction date unknown.
[This species hasn't been genetically studied but most likely belongs in Laterallus rather than in its own genus].


Photo below by @Chlidonias of a Chatham Islands Rail Cabalus [or Gallirallus] modestus at the Otago Museum (New Zealand).


Chatham Islands Rail (Cabalus modestus), Otago Museum - ZooChat



Human-caused generic extinctions prior to European contact:
(i.e. known only from subfossil bones, although in some cases there are suggestions Europeans may have seen living birds or heard local stories of recent survival)


Capellirallus
Snipe Rail Capellirallus karamu - North Island (New Zealand)


Diaphorapteryx
Hawkins' Rail Diaphorapteryx hawkinsi - Chatham Islands (New Zealand)


Hovacrex
Hova Gallinule Hovacrex roberti - Madagascar


Nesotrochis
Antillean Cave Rail N. debooyi - Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands
Cuban Cave Rail N. picapicensis - Cuba
Haitian Cave Rail N. steganinos - Haiti
[Note that this genus has been shown to actually be a sister group to flufftails and adzebills, and not a true rail at all: see https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsbl.2020.0760]


Vitirallus
Viti Levu Rail Vitirallus watlingi - Viti Levu (Fiji)



Photo below by @Chlidonias of an articulated skeleton of a Hawkins' Rail Diaphorapteryx hawkinsi at the Auckland War Memorial Museum (New Zealand).


Skeleton of Hawkins' Rail (Diaphorapteryx hawkinsi) - ZooChat

 

LIVING RAIL GENERA


The taxonomy of the family Rallidae is like a game of musical chairs, with species continually being split and lumped, being swapped back and forth between genera, and with new genera being created and then discarded only to be later brought back again for another round. The difficulties of assessing the relationships within Rallidae are largely due to how similar all species are in a general sense, and by the amount of convergent evolution they display (i.e. unrelated rail species can look more similar to one another than to related species). Particularly in the past when groupings were based on physical similarities this resulted in genera which DNA studies have later shown are polyphyletic. Basically, no taxonomic source for the family can be considered "the correct one" because they are all different and always changing.


Below I will give three current lists of genera as used by different sources, each of which has a different taxonomic arrangement.

The first list is from HBW Alive;

The second list is from Cornell's Birds of the World website (BOW), in which I have made notes on differences from the HBW list;

The third list is the one currently on Wikipedia which was taken directly from the IOC Bird List, and in which I have made notes on differences between both the preceding lists (HBW and BOW).


......................


HBW Alive list of rail genera (only covering extant species):

Himantornis (1 sp)
Canirallus (1 sp)
Rallicula (4 spp)
Rallina (4 spp)
Coturnicops (3 spp)
Micropygia (1 sp)
Rufirallus (2 spp)
Laterallus (10 spp)
Rallus (13 spp)
Aramidopsis (1 sp)
Lewinia (4 spp)
Habroptila (1 sp)
Gallirallus (3 spp)
Eulabeornis (1 sp)
Hypotaenidia (9 spp)
Dryolimnas (1 sp)
Crex (2 spp)
Rougetius (1 sp)
Atlantisia (1 sp)
Aramides (7 spp)
Amaurolimnas (1 sp)
Cyanolimnas (1 sp)
Neocrex (2 spp)
Pardirallus (3 spp)
Gymnocrex (3 spp)
Hapalocrex (1 sp)
Porzana (6 spp)
Zapornia (10 spp)
Amaurornis (7 spp)
Megacrex (1 sp)
Gallicrex (1 sp)
Porphyrio (5 spp)
Pareudiastes (2 spp)
Gallinula (6 spp)
Tribonyx (2 spp)
Fulica (10 spp)


......................


BOW list of rail genera (covering extant and recently-extinct species):

Rallus (13 spp)
Dryolimnas (1 extant sp + 1 extinct sp)
Aphanapteryx (extinct genus)
Erythromachus (extinct genus)
Crex (2 spp)
Rougetius (1 sp)
Atlantisia (1 extant sp + 1 extinct sp [the latter otherwise included in the extinct genus Aphanocrex])
Mundia (extinct genus)
Aramidopsis (1 sp)
Lewinia (4 spp)
Gymnocrex (3 spp)
Diaphorapteryx (extinct genus)
Gallirallus (13 extant spp + 5 extinct spp) [combining the Eulabeornis, Gallirallus, Habroptila and Hypotaenidia of HBW]
Canirallus (1 sp)
Mustelirallus (3 spp) [genus created from the two Neocrex species and Porzana albicollis of HBW]
Cyanolimnas (1 sp)
Pardirallus (3 spp)
Amaurolimnas (1 sp)
Aramides (8 spp)
Tribonyx (2 extant spp + 1 extinct)
Porphyriops (1 sp) [placed in Gallinula in HBW]
Porzana (4 spp) [the P. albicollis of HBW was moved to Mustellirallus; and the P. fasciata of HBW was moved to Anurolimnas].
Paragallinula (1 sp) [placed in Gallinula in HBW]
Gallinula (6 extant spp + 1 extinct; but this 6 is different from HBW's 6 because the two Pareudiastes (Samoan and Makira Moorhens) of HBW have here been placed into Gallinula, and Lesser and Spot-flanked Gallinules have been removed to the monotypic genera Porphyriops and Paragallinula)
Fulica (10 extant spp + 1 extinct sp)
Porphyrio (10 extant spp + 5 extinct spp) [the P. porphyrio of HBW has been split into six species]
Himantornis (1 sp)
Megacrex (1 sp)
Gallicrex (1 sp)
Amaurornis (7 spp)
Rallina (8 spp) [combining the genera Rallina and Rallicula of HBW]
Zapornia (10 extant spp + 5 extinct spp)
Micropygia (1 sp)
Anurolimnas (3 spp) [genus created from the two Rufirallus species and Porzana fasciatus of HBW]
Coturnicops (3 spp)
Hapalocrex (1 sp)
Laterallus (9 spp)


......................


Wikipedia list of rail genera (from the IOC Bird List; covering extant and recently-extinct species):

Himantornis (1 sp)
Canirallus (1 sp)
Coturnicops (3 spp)
Micropygia (1 sp)
Rallicula (4 spp) [combined with Rallina in BOW]
Rallina (4 spp)
Anurolimnas (1 sp) [this is the Rufirallus castaneiceps of HBW; in BOW this genus contains 3 spp, which were the two Rufirallus of HBW and Porzana fasciatus of HBW]
Laterallus (11 spp)
Nesoclopeus (1 extant sp, 1 extinct sp) [placed in Hypotaenidia in HBW and in Gallirallus in BOW]
Gallirallus (11 extant spp, 4 extinct spp) [in HBW divided between Gallirallus and Hypotaenidia; and combined again in BOW but also including Eulabeornis and Habroptila]
Diaphorapteryx (extinct genus)
Rallus (14 sp)
Lewinia (3 spp)
Dryolimnas (1 extant sp, 1 extinct sp)
Aphanapteryx (extinct genus)
Erythromachus (extinct genus)
Crex (2 spp)
Rougetius (1 sp)
Aramidopsis (1 sp)
Mundia (extinct genus)
Aphanocrex (extinct genus) [placed in Atlantisia in BOW]
Atlantisia (1 sp)
Aramides (8 spp)
Amaurolimnas (1 sp)
Gymnocrex (3 spp)
Amaurornis (8 spp)
Porzana (14 extant spp, 5 extinct spp) [many individual species moved between different genera in HBW and BOW]
Aenigmatolimnas (1 sp) [placed in Amaurornis in both HBW and BOW]
Cyanolimnas (1 sp)
Neocrex (2 spp) [placed in Mustelirallus in BOW]
Pardirallus (3 spp)
Eulabeornis (1 sp) [placed in Gallirallus in BOW]
Habroptila (1 sp) [placed in Gallirallus in BOW]
Megacrex (1 sp)
Gallicrex (1 sp)
Porphyrio (10 extant spp, 2 extinct spp)
Gallinula (5 extant spp, 2 extinct spp) [two species separated as Pareudiastes in HBW]
Paragallinula (1 sp) [placed in Gallinula in HBW]
Porphyriops (1 sp) [placed in Gallinula in HBW]
Tribonyx (2 extant spp, 1 extinct sp)
Fulica (10 extant spp, 1 extinct sp)


......................


Along with the differences in which species are placed in which genera, there has also been a fair bit of disagreement in how to arrange the genera themselves. In the later part of the 20th century the most-accepted division of the family was that created in 1973 by Storrs Olson who proposed that there were two subfamilies, the monotypic Himantornithinae (for the Nkulengu Rail Himantornis haematopus) and Rallinae for all the rest (which at that time also included the flufftails, now placed into a separate family). The most recent assessment before Olson had been by Verheyen in 1957 where five subfamilies were recognised, namely Fulicinae (coots, gallinules, moorhens, etc), Porphyriinae (swamphens), Sarothrurinae (flufftails), Himantornithinae (the Nkulengu Rail), and Rallinae (all the rest); and prior to that by Peters in 1934.


DNA studies have helped sort out some of the issues, although as shown by the three lists of genera above, there are still differences in current treatments.

A 2014 paper by Garcia-R et al ("Deep global evolutionary radiation in birds: Diversification and trait evolution in the cosmopolitan bird family Rallidae") divided the family into eight clades. This study is what most current Rallidae taxonomies are based upon. The following breakdown does not include all the genera from the previous lists because it is listing them by their previous names; however note how certain polyphyletic genera (especially Porzana) are broken up between clades.


"Rallus" - Rallus, Diaphorapteryx, Habroptila, Gallirallus (including Nesoclopeus), Eulabeornis, Crex, Lewinia, Aramidopsis, Dryolimnas.

"Porphyrio" - Porphyrio.

"Rallina" - Rallina and probably Gymnocrex.

"Porzana" - Porzana (paykulii, fusca, tabuensis, pusilla, parva), and Amaurornis (flavirostris, akool). (Interestingly, this grouping includes only species now placed in the genus Zapornia, with the "true" Porzana (i.e. the first-described species) placed in the "Fulica" clade. So "Zapornia" is now a more accurate name for this clade than "Porzana").

"Laterallus" - Porzana (spiloptera, flaviventer), Laterallus, Coturnicops, Anurolimnas.

"Gallicrex" - Gallicrex, Amaurornis (moluccana, phoenicurus), Megacrex, Himantornis.

"Aramides" - Amaurolimnas, Aramides, Pardirallus, Neocrex erythrops, Porzana albicollis.

"Fulica" - Gallinula, Fulica (nested within Gallinula as it was then recognised, with results showing that Gallinula was not monophyletic - some species were more closely related to Fulica and other species more closely to Porzana), Porzana (porzana, fluminea, carolina).


A follow-up study by Garcia-R et al "Phylogenomic Reconstruction Sheds Light on New Relationships and Timescale of Rails (Aves: Rallidae) Evolution", published in 2020, confirmed most of their results from the 2014 study, although with two major differences. A new look at the genus Himantornis showed it to actually be completely distinct from other rails, which tallied with previous publications, and hence they moved it to its own clade next to the "Fulica" clade (the differing results in the 2014 and 2020 studies are thought to have been from the 2014 genetic sample for Himantornis being misidentified). The more major finding was that the genus Rallicula from New Guinea, which had not been sampled in the 2014 study, was found to actually belong to the flufftail family Sarothruridae and to not be "true" rails at all - this was particularly surprising as some publications (e.g. BOW) were combining Rallicula into Rallina (the latter genus are shown to be true rails and not at all related to Rallicula).


The above division of clades is what I will be following in this thread, although with nine clades instead of eight (due to the 2020 paper and its finding regarding the placement of Himantornis), and with some additional changes from HBW / BOW. In the next post I will list all the genera and species in the order they will be covered here.

 

LIST OF RAIL SPECIES


In this thread the total number of species comes out at 130 extant species in c.37 genera, of which 59 species from c.20 genera are represented in the Zoochat galleries.


The genera in the thread will be arranged as per the clades outlined in the previous post, with the genera within each clade listed alphabetically (except in the case of the first two genera listed for "Rallus" because their taxonomic relationships are generally deemed uncertain). Species will be listed alphabetically under each genus.


The list below only contains the extant species, and the ones marked with asterisks are those which are depicted with photos in the thread. Extinct species will be mentioned in the later accounts for each genus.



"Rallus"

*Rouget's Rail Rougetius rougetii

Grey-throated Rail Canirallus oculeus

Snoring Rail Aramidopsis plateni

*African Crake Crecopsis egregia

*Corncrake Crex crex

*White-throated Rail Dryolimnas cuvieri

*Chestnut Rail Eulabeornis castaneoventris

*Weka Gallirallus australis
Calayan Rail Gallirallus calayanensis
New Britain Rail Gallirallus insignis
*Okinawa Rail Gallirallus okinawae
*Guam Rail Gallirallus owstoni
*Buff-banded Rail Gallirallus philippensis
Roviana Rail Gallirallus rovianae
Lord Howe Woodhen Gallirallus sylvestris
*Barred Rail Gallirallus torquatus
Woodford's Rail Gallirallus woodfordi

Drummer Rail Habroptila wallacii

Brown-banded Rail Lewinia mirifica
Auckland Islands Rail Lewinia muelleri
*Lewin's Rail Lewinia pectoralis
Slaty-breasted Rail Lewinia striata

Ecuadorian Rail Rallus aequatorialis
Austral Rail Rallus antarcticus
*Western Water Rail Rallus aquaticus
African Rail Rallus caerulescens
*Clapper Rail Rallus crepitans
*King Rail Rallus elegans
Eastern Water Rail Rallus indicus
*Virginia Rail Rallus limicola
Mangrove Rail Rallus longirostris
Madagascar Rail Rallus madagascariensis
*Ridgway's Rail Rallus obsoletus
Bogota Rail Rallus semiplumbeus
Mexican Rail Rallus tenuirostris
Plain-flanked Rail Rallus wetmorei


"Porphyrio"

*Allen's Gallinule Porphyrio alleni
Azure Gallinule Porphyrio flavirostris
*Takahe Porphyrio hochstetteri
*Black-backed Swamphen Porphyrio indicus
*African Swamphen Porphyrio madagascariensis
*American Purple Gallinule Porphyrio martinicus
*Australasian Swamphen Porphyrio melanotus
*Grey-headed Swamphen Porphyrio poliocephalus
*Western Swamphen Porphyrio porphyrio
Philippine Swamphen Porphyrio pulverulentus


"Rallina"

Bare-eyed Rail Gymnocrex plumbeiventris
Blue-faced Rail Gymnocrex rosenbergii
Talaud Rail Gymnocrex talaudensis

Andaman Crake Rallina canningi
Slaty-legged Crake Rallina eurizonoides
*Red-legged Crake Rallina fasciata
Red-necked Crake Rallina tricolor


"Zapornia"

Brown Crake Zapornia akool
Henderson Island Crake Zapornia atra
Black-tailed Crake Zapornia bicolor
*Black Crake Zapornia flavirostra
Ruddy-breasted Crake Zapornia fusca
Sakalava Rail Zapornia olivieri
*Little Crake Zapornia parva
Band-bellied Crake Zapornia paykullii
*Baillon's Crake Zapornia pusilla
*Spotless Crake Zapornia tabuensis


"Laterallus"

Chestnut-headed Crake Anurolimnas castaneiceps
Black-banded Crake Anurolimnas fasciata
Russet-crowned Crake Anurolimnas viridis

Inaccessible Rail Atlantisia rogersi

Swinhoe's Rail Coturnicops exquisitus
Speckled Rail Coturnicops notatus
Yellow Rail Coturnicops noveboracensis

Yellow-breasted Crake Hapalocrex flaviventer

*White-throated Crake Laterallus albigularis
Grey-breasted Crake Laterallus exilis
Black Rail Laterallus jamaicensis
*Red-and-white Crake Laterallus leucopyrrhus
Rusty-flanked Crake Laterallus levraudi
*Rufous-sided Crake Laterallus melanophaius
*Ruddy Crake Laterallus ruber
Galapagos Rail Laterallus spilonota
Dot-winged Crake Laterallus spiloptera
Rufous-faced Crake Laterallus xenopterus

Ocellated Crake Micropygia schomburgkii


"Gallicrex"

Striped Crake Aenigmatolimnas marginalis

Isabelline Bush-hen Amaurornis isabellina
Talaud Bush-hen Amaurornis magnirostris
*Pale-vented Bush-hen Amaurornis moluccana
Philippine Bush-hen Amaurornis olivacea
*White-breasted Waterhen Amaurornis phoenicurus

Watercock Gallicrex cinerea

*White-browed Crake "Amaurornis" cinerea
(see the relevant post for this placement)

New Guinea Flightless Rail Megacrex inepta


"Aramides"

Uniform Crake Amaurolimnas concolor

*White-bellied or Russet-naped Wood Rail Aramides albiventris
Plumbeous-backed Wood Rail Aramides avicenniae
*Rufous-necked Wood Rail Aramides axillaris
*Grey-necked Wood Rail Aramides cajaneus
Red-winged Wood Rail Aramides calopterus
Little Wood Rail Aramides mangle
*Slaty-breasted Wood Rail Aramides saracura
Brown Wood Rail Aramides wolfi
*Giant Wood Rail Aramides ypecaha

Zapata Rail Cyanolimnas cerverai

*Ash-throated Crake Mustelirallus albicollis
Colombian Crake Mustelirallus colombiana
Paint-billed Crake Mustelirallus erythrops

*Spotted Rail Pardirallus maculatus
*Blackish Rail Pardirallus nigricans
Plumbeous Rail Pardirallus sanguinolentus


"Himantornis"

Nkulengu Rail Himantornis haematopus


"Fulica"

*Hawaiian Coot Fulica alai
*American Coot Fulica americana
*Andean Coot Fulica ardesiaca
Red-gartered Coot Fulica armillata
*Common or Eurasian Coot Fulica atra
Horned Coot Fulica cornuta
*Red-knobbed Coot Fulica cristata
*Giant Coot Fulica gigantea
White-winged Coot Fulica leucoptera
Red-fronted Coot Fulica rufifrons

*Common Moorhen Gallinula chloropus
*Gough Island Moorhen Gallinula comeri
*Common Gallinule Gallinula galeata
*Dusky Moorhen Gallinula tenebrosa

Lesser Moorhen Paragallinula angulata

Spot-flanked Gallinule Porphyriops melanops

*Sora Porzana carolina
*Australian Crake Porzana fluminea
*Spotted Crake Porzana porzana

*Tasmanian Native Hen Tribonyx mortierii
*Black-tailed Native Hen Tribonyx ventralis

 

The "Rallus" clade.


This clade contains eleven genera, including the uncertainly-placed Canirallus (1 sp). Because this genus is of an uncertain relation to other rails it has been placed at the beginning of the following posts, along with Rougetius which was also of uncertain affinities. Hence these two genera are out of alphabetical sequence to the others. In 2020 a paper was published confirming that Rougetius at least does belong in the "Rallus" clade.

Most of the genera are very small: Aramidopsis, Crecopsis, Crex, Dryolimnas, Eulabeornis and Habroptila each contain only a single extant species; and Lewinia contains four species.

Only two genera have more than a handful of species, with Rallus having about fourteen extant species and Gallirallus having about ten extant species - however the latter genus has numerous historically-extinct species, and was probably at one time the largest modern genus of rails.


Over half of the genera are represented by photographs in this thread: Rougetius, Crecopsis, Crex, Dryolimnas, Eulabeornis, Gallirallus, Lewinia and Rallus.

 

Rougetius
One species, which is depicted below.


A genus containing a single species about which very little appears to be known. Most accounts online are bare-bones, not saying much beyond the distribution and that it is threatened by habitat conversion.


The affinities of the genus are uncertain - the IUCN Taxonomy section, for example, is empty - and so its placement in the "Rallus" clade was best-guesswork until recently. A paper published in 2020 on rail genetics (Phylogenomic Reconstruction Sheds Light on New Relationships and Timescale of Rails (Aves: Rallidae) Evolution) confirmed the placement of this genus within the "Rallus" clade and found that it is actually a sister-species to the African Crake "Crex" egregia (now in its own genus, Crecopsis), however the paper was published after this part of thread was posted so the genus remains out of alphabetical sequence here.




Rouget's Rail Rougetius rougetii
Monotypic.


Endemic to the highlands of Ethiopia and Eritrea.


Photo by @Maguari in the wild, Ethiopia


Rouget's Rail in Bale Mountains NP, 15/10/14 - ZooChat


Photo by @Giant Eland in the wild, Ethiopia


Rouget's Rail (Rougetius rougetii) - ZooChat

 

Canirallus
One species, which is not represented in the Zoochat galleries.


The affinities of this genus are uncertain, so its placement in the "Rallus" clade is a "best guess". Previously the single species was thought to be closely-related to the two Mentocrex species of Madagascar (now placed in the separate family Sarothruridae), with all three species being placed in the genus Canirallus.



Grey-throated Rail Canirallus oculeus
Monotypic, although batesi has been used for the population in eastern Cameroon.


Found in rainforests in west and central Africa, from Sierra Leone to Uganda.

 

Aramidopsis
One species, which is not represented in the Zoochat galleries.



Snoring Rail Aramidopsis plateni
Monotypic.


Endemic to Sulawesi (Indonesia).

 

Crecopsis
One species, depicted below.


This species has generally been placed in the genus Crex but a paper on rail genetics published in 2020 (Phylogenomic Reconstruction Sheds Light on New Relationships and Timescale of Rails (Aves: Rallidae) Evolution) found that the two species in the genus (Corncrake Crex crex and African Crake Crex egregia) are actually not closely related to one another, and that instead the African Crake is a sister-species to Rouget's Rail Rougetius rougetii. Following the paper's publication the IOC moved the African Crake to the monotypic genus Crecopsis, which had been used for this species in the past, and so I have followed that treatment here.



African Crake Crecopsis egregia
Monotypic.

As noted above, this species was formerly placed in the genus Crex, and sometimes alternatively in Porzana based on superficial external similarities.


Found throughout most of subsaharan Africa, from Senegal to Kenya, and south to South Africa.


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Uganda


African Crake - ZooChat

 

Crex
One species, depicted below.


This genus generally contains two species (the Corncrake Crex crex and the African Crake Crex egregia) but a paper on rail genetics published in 2020 found that these two species are actually not closely related to one another. See the post above for the African Crake, which I have placed in the separate genus Crecopsis.



Corncrake Crex crex
Monotypic.


Found across most of central Eurasia from Europe to China and Mongolia, and migrating to subsaharan Africa to winter.


Photo by @Tomek at Warsaw Zoo (Poland)


Corncrake (Crex crex) - ZooChat

 

Dryolimnas
One extant species, which is represented in the Zoochat galleries.

A small genus endemic to islands in the Indian Ocean (including Madagascar). It may be better combined in Lewinia. There is a single extant species and two known extinct species.



Two historically-extinct species:

Reunion Rail Dryolimnas augusti
A probably-flightless species from Reunion in the Mascarene Islands group. Known from subfossil skeletal remains, collected in 1996. One historical record from 1674 may refer to this species.

Cheke's or Sauzier's Rail Dryolimnas chekei
A probably-flightless species from Mauritius in the Mascarene Islands group. Known from subfossil skeletal remains, and described as a new species in 2019 (the first bones found had initially been attributed to D. cuvieri of Madagascar, which is known to be a vagrant to the island). Historical records of "small rails" on Mauritius may refer to this species.



One extant species:


White-throated Rail Dryolimnas cuvieri
Three subspecies: abbotti, aldabranus, cuvieri


D. c. abbotti was endemic to Assumption Island, but became extinct in the early 20th century - the island was settled in 1908 and the rail disappeared soon afterwards, probably due to introduced rats.

D. c. aldabranus (Aldabra Rail) is endemic to Aldabra Island. This subspecies is flightless, and is the only flightless bird remaining on the Indian Ocean islands. It is sometimes treated as a full species.

D. c. cuvieri is found in Madagascar, Mayotte, the Comoros, and the Seychelles.



Photo by @Therabu in the wild, Madagascar - subspecies cuvieri


White-throated Rail Dryolimnas cuvieri - ZooChat

 

Eulabeornis
One species, depicted below.

This species, native largely to the coastal mainland of northern Australia, is closely related to the Gallirallus species. Cornell's Birds of the World actually includes it within Gallirallus although this is not a typical treatment.



Chestnut Rail Eulabeornis castaneoventris
Two subspecies: castaneoventris and sharpei.

Only the subspecies castaneoventris is represented in the Zoochat galleries.


E. c. castaneoventris is found in northern Australia, from Western Australia to the Gulf of Carpentaria.

E. c. sharpei is from the Aru Islands, west of New Guinea.



Photo by @Simon Hampel at Featherdale Wildlife Park (Australia) - subspecies castaneoventris


Chestnut Rail, Jul 2011 - ZooChat

 

Gallirallus
About ten extant species, of which five are represented in the Zoochat galleries (marked in the list below with asterisks).


*Weka Gallirallus australis
Calayan Rail Gallirallus calayanensis
New Britain Rail Gallirallus insignis
*Okinawa Rail Gallirallus okinawae
*Guam Rail Gallirallus owstoni
*Buff-banded Rail Gallirallus philippensis
Roviana Rail Gallirallus rovianae
Lord Howe Woodhen Gallirallus sylvestris
*Barred Rail Gallirallus torquatus
Woodford's Rail Gallirallus woodfordi


Note that the Slaty-breasted Rail (formerly Gallirallus striatus) is in this thread placed under Lewinia as that seems to have become the accepted change.



Gallirallus is a widespread genus, found from the Philippines and Sulawesi, through the Lesser Sundas, Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia, and even down into the subantarctic islands south of New Zealand and Australia. The bulk of this range is covered by one "super-tramp" species, the Buff-banded Rail G. philippensis. The majority of other species are much more restricted, mostly being endemic to individual oceanic islands.


There are a few different taxonomic opinions on how to treat the various species within this group. At one time all were usually placed in Rallus (which formerly was more of a catch-all genus). Later most of the species listed here were split off as Gallirallus because they are all clearly related. Other genera used at the same time were Tricholimnas (for the Lord Howe Woodhen and New Caledonian Rail), and Nesoclopeus (for the Woodford's Rail, and the now-extinct Fijian Bar-winged Rail). More recently a number of species were split off into another genus, Hypotaenidia, which was based around the Buff-banded Rail, leaving only the Weka in Gallirallus - variably Hypotaenidia is still either kept separate or recombined with Gallirallus. Currently Cornell's Birds of the World and the Clements Checklist also include the monotypic genera Eulabeornis (Australia's Chestnut Rail) and Habroptila (Halmahera's Drummer Rail) in Gallirallus, although neither of these changes are followed by any other authority as far as I can tell.

In this thread I keep Eulabeornis and Habroptila separated, but place all other species under Gallirallus.




Several insular Gallirallus species are known to have become extinct historically (listed below), and it is likely that hundreds of unknown species have become extinct on Pacific islands within the last few thousand years, following the arrival of humans.


Historically-extinct species (i.e. those for which specimens have been reported or collected after European arrival in the Pacific):

Vava'u Rail Gallirallus sp.
An undescribed rail from the Tongan island of Vava'u, known only from a life-like sketch made in 1739 on the Malaspina Expedition (from Spain). The sketch is annotated to indicate that the bird was blue in colour and had a red bill (with "azul" in this context probably meaning grey rather than actual blue). Interestingly, another drawing from this expedition may show the Pacific Eclectus Eclectus infectus, otherwise known only from subfossil remains. (See this paper: https://www.euppublishing.com/doi/pdfplus/10.3366/anh.2006.33.1.42)

Norfolk Island Rail Gallirallus sp.
Apparently still undescribed and known only from subfossil bones, but it probably survived until the first arrival of Europeans and the introduction of rats. A rail depicted in a 1788 watercolour painting from Norfolk Island may represent this species in life.

Dieffenbach's Rail Gallirallus dieffenbachii
A flightless species formerly treated as a subspecies of the Buff-banded Rail G. philippensis. Known from subfossil bones from deposits on several of the Chatham Islands (east of New Zealand), but in life recorded only by Ernst Dieffenbach in 1840 when he collected one specimen on Chatham Island (now at the Tring Museum in the UK). He notes that it was "formerly very common" but that cats and dogs had decreased its numbers substantially. It became extinct at some point in the next few decades. James Greenway in his 1967 Extinct and Vanishing Birds of the World claimed there was a second specimen at the Bremen Museum (Germany), and this is repeated in all others sources with the usual addition of the word "supposedly" - there doesn't seem to be any corroborating evidence of this specimen's existence.

Tongatapu Rail Gallirallus hypoleucus
A possibly non-existent species, known only from one specimen collected in Tonga on Captain Cook's third voyage in 1777. This specimen no longer exists but the colouration was described by Latham in 1784 (where it was treated as a form of the Buff-banded Rail Gallirallus philippensis).

New Caledonian Rail Gallirallus lafresnayanus
A flightless species endemic to New Caledonia, not recorded since 1890. Seventeen specimens exist in museums. Unsubstantiated claims of sightings in the 1960s and in 1984 seem extremely unlikely.

Chatham Islands Rail Gallirallus modestus
A flightless species often placed in the monotypic genus Cabalus but it is clearly derived from a Gallirallus. Known from subfossil bones from deposits on several of the Chatham Islands (east of New Zealand), but in life recorded only on Mangere Island where it was first recorded in 1872. The last specimens were collected in 1893; in 1894 rats reached Mangere and the rail was not seen again. There are 34 specimens existing in museums today. One such specimen is depicted in a photo at the end of this post.

Tahiti Rail Gallirallus pacificus
One specimen was collected on Tahiti in 1773 during Captain Cook's second voyage, of which only the painting by Georg Forster survives. Nothing else is known of the bird but unsubstantiated claims have the species surviving on Tahiti until the late 1800s and on a nearby island named Mehetia until the 1930s (both of which dates seem extremely unlikely).

Bar-winged Rail Gallirallus poecilopterus
Endemic to Fiji, not recorded since 1890. Twelve specimens exist in museums, collected on the islands of Viti Levu and Ovalau during the 19th century. There have been unsubstantiated claims of sightings as late as 1973.

Sharpe's Rail Gallirallus sharpei
A probably non-existent species, known only from a mounted specimen of unknown origin at the Leiden Museum (Netherlands). The current assessment is that it is probably a partially-melanistic Buff-banded Rail Gallirallus philippensis.

Wake Island Rail Gallirallus wakensis
A flightless species endemic to Wake Atoll, in the Pacific. It was first described in 1903 and remained common until World War 2, when Japanese soldiers stationed there became cut off from supplies by American blockades in 1941. The rails became extinct at some point between 1942 and 1945, via the combination of being eaten by the starving troops and through the continual bombing of the islets by the Americans. The seabird colonies on the atoll were also entirely wiped out during this time but have since recovered.



The following island species are also known to have been rendered extinct prior to European arrival in the Pacific (i.e. species known or described only from subfossil deposits):

Lifuka Rail Gallirallus sp. (Tonga)
Hiva Oa Rail Gallirallus sp. (Marquesas)
Nuku Hiva Rail Gallirallus epulare (Marquesas)
New Ireland Rail Gallirallus ernstmayri (New Ireland)
Ua Huka Rail Gallirallus gracilitibia (Marquesas)
Niue Rail Gallirallus huiatua (Niue)
Tinian Rail Gallirallus pendiculentus (Mariana Islands)
Aguiguan Rail Gallirallus pisonii (Mariana Islands)
Mangaia Rail Gallirallus ripleyi (Cook Islands)
Tahuata Rail Gallirallus roletti (Marquesas)
Tubuai Rail Gallirallus steadmani (Austral Islands)
Huahine Rail Gallirallus storrsolsoni (Society Islands)
Rota Rail Gallirallus temptatus (Mariana Islands)
Eua Rail Gallirallus vekamatolu (Tonga)



Photo by @Chlidonias of an extinct Chatham Islands Rail Cabalus [or Gallirallus] modestus at the Otago Museum (New Zealand)


Chatham Islands Rail (Cabalus modestus), Otago Museum - ZooChat

 

Weka Gallirallus australis
Four subspecies: australis, greyi, hectori, scotti - although it is thought likely that hectori is simply a colour morph of australis, and scotti may also not be separable.

All four subspecies are represented in the Zoochat galleries.


G. a. australis (Western Weka) is found down the western side and the northern end of New Zealand's South Island.

G. a. greyi (North Island Weka) is found in New Zealand's North Island, although now restricted to few locations.

G. a. hectori (Buff Weka) was formerly found on the eastern side of New Zealand's South Island, but is now extinct there (c.1920) apart for some small reintroductions to islands in Lake Wanaka. However this subspecies is common on the Chatham Islands (east of New Zealand) to which it was introduced in 1905.

G. a. scotti (Stewart Island Weka) is found only on Stewart Island, at the south end of New Zealand.



Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, New Zealand - subspecies australis (Western Weka)


Western Weka (Gallirallus australis australis) - ZooChat


Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, New Zealand - subspecies greyi (North Island Weka)


North Island Weka (Gallirallus australis greyi) - ZooChat


Photo by @Chlidonias at Willowbank Wildlife Reserve (New Zealand) - subspecies hectori (Buff Weka)


Buff Weka (Gallirallus australis hectori) - ZooChat


Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, New Zealand - subspecies scotti (Stewart Island Weka)


Stewart Island weka (Gallirallus australis scotti) with chick - ZooChat

 

Calayan Rail Gallirallus calayanensis
Monotypic.



Endemic to Calayan Island in the Philippines, and only discovered in 2004.



This species is not represented in the Zoochat galleries.



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New Britain Rail Gallirallus insignis
Monotypic

Sometimes has been placed in its own genus, Habropteryx, which is untenable.



Endemic to the island of New Britain.



This species is not represented in the Zoochat galleries.



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Okinawa Rail Gallirallus okinawae
Monotypic.



Endemic to the island of Okinawa (Japan).



Photo by @Sicarius at the Okinawa Rail Learning Center (Japan)


Okinawa rail (Hypotaenidia okinawae) - ZooChat



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Guam Rail Gallirallus owstoni
Monotypic.



Endemic to the island of Guam, but became extinct in the wild in 1987 following the accidental introduction of the Brown Tree Snake Boiga irregularis at the end of World War 2. In 1983 the wild population of Guam Rails had fallen to c.100 birds, at which time a captive-breeding programme was initiated with 21 wild-caught birds. The entire wild population was extinct by 1987. Today, as well as the captive population, there are c.200 birds wild on Rota Island (in the Marianas group, north of Guam) and 60-80 wild birds on Cocos Island (off the coast of Guam).



Photo by @Andrew_NZP at the National Aviary (USA)


Tropical Rainforest - Guam Rail - ZooChat


Photo by @ThylacineAlive of a chick at Bronx Zoo (USA)


Guam Rail Chick - ZooChat

 

Buff-banded Rail Gallirallus philippensis
About twenty subspecies, but it differs with authority and is complicated by the many insular populations.

Five of the subspecies are represented in the Zoochat galleries: assimilis, goodsoni, mellori, sethsmithi, and probably philippensis (the last being based on the locality of the zoo in which the photo was taken).


G. p. admiralitatis is endemic to the Admiralty Islands.
G. p. anachoretae is found in the northwest Bismarck Archipelago.
G. p. andrewsi is endemic to Cocos Island in the Indian Ocean.
G. p. assimilis is found in New Zealand.
G. p. chandleri is from northern Sulawesi (but usually merged with G. p. philippensis as there seems to be no reason to separate them).
G. p. christophori is found in the Solomon Islands.
G. p. ecaudatus is found in Tonga.
G. p. goodsoni is from Samoa and Niue.
G. p. lacustris is from northern New Guinea (but G. p. randi, G. p. reductus, G. p. wahgiensis, etc, should probably all be included in lacustris as there seems little reason to separate multiple subspecies within New Guinea).
G. p. lesouefi is from New Hanover, and the Tabar and Tanga Islands.
G. p. macquariensis was endemic to Macquarie Island in the subantarctic but is now extinct.
G. p. mellori has some differing distributions (according to source) but is often said to be from the Moluccas, New Guinea, Australia and Norfolk Island (the last formerly separated as G. p. norfolkensis). The type locality of mellori was in southwest Australia.
G. p. meyeri is from New Britain and the Witu Islands (Bismarck Archipelago).
G. p. pelewensis is from the Palau Islands.
G. p. philippensis is the main southeast Asian subspecies, found in the Philippines and Sulawesi east to Buru and the Lesser Sundas.
G. p. praedo is endemic to Skoki Island, in the Admiralty Islands.
G. p. randi is from the Snow Mountains in New Guinea, but should probably be included within G. p. lacustris.
G. p. reductus is from the central highlands and the northeast coast of New Guinea (G. p. wahgiensis, if separated, forms the population in the highlands, but both should probably be included within G. p. lacustris as there seems little reason to separate multiple subspecies within New Guinea).
G. p. sethsmithi is found in Vanuatu and Fiji.
G. p. swindellsi is found in New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands.
G. p. tounelieri should probably be included in G. p. mellori; it is found on the islands of the Coral Sea (off eastern Australia) east to the Surprise Group (off New Caledonia).
G. p. wilkinsoni is from Flores.
G. p. xerophilus is from Gunungapi in the Lesser Sundas.
G. p. yorki is a confusing mix - the distribution is given on Wikipedia's list as being the Moluccas, and western and southern New Guinea. However the type locality is Cape York Peninsula in Australia (hence the name yorki). The HBW - and followed by the BOW - understandably does not recognise this subspecies, saying "some yorki (from N Queensland, Australia) in mellori, while other yorki (from islands off SE New Guinea) in tounelieri". It seems that the distribution for mellori as including the Moluccas is due to including what was yorki.



Photo by @zooboy28 in the wild, New Zealand - subspecies assimilis.


Banded Rail - Great Barrier Island 2010 - ZooChat


Photo by @Chlidonias in the wild, Samoa - subspecies goodsoni.


Banded rail (Gallirallus philippensis) - ZooChat


Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - subspecies mellori.


Banded Rail - ZooChat


Photo by @WhistlingKite24 at Ipswich Nature Centre (Australia) - chick of the subspecies mellori.


Buff-banded Rail Chick - ZooChat


Photo by @Nick@Amsterdam at Avilon Zoo (Philippines) - this is probably the subspecies philippensis given the zoo's locality and that it would seem unlikely they would be importing some other subspecies to the zoo.


Buff-banded Rail (Gallirallus philippensis) - ZooChat


Photo by @Terry Thomas at Kula Eco Park (Fiji) - subspecies sethsmithi.


Banded rail. Fiji - ZooChat

 

Roviana Rail Gallirallus rovianae
Monotypic, although HBW notes that the population on Kolombangara may be distinct.



Endemic to the central Solomon Islands, on Kolombangara, Wana Wana, Kohinggo, New Georgia and Rendova.



This species is not represented in the Zoochat galleries.



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Lord Howe Woodhen Gallirallus sylvestris
Monotypic.

Has formerly been placed in the genus Tricholimnas.



Endemic to Lord Howe Island (between New Zealand and Australia).



This species is not represented in the Zoochat galleries.



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Barred Rail Gallirallus torquatus
From five to ten subspecies on different islands : celebensis, kuehni, limarius, maxwelli, quisumbingi, remigialis, sanfordi, simillimus, sulcirostris, torquatus


G. t. celebensis is from Sulawesi and adjacent islands (including G. t. remigialis).

G. t. kuehni is from the Tukangbesi Islands off Sulawesi.

G. t. limarius is from Salawati and northwestern New Guinea.

G. t. sulcirostris is from Peleng Island and the Sula Islands, off Sulawesi (including G. t. simillimus from Peleng).

G. t. torquatus is from the Philippines (with various islands' populations divided between other subspecies - maxwelli, quisumbingi, sanfordi - depending on taxonomy).



Photo by @Deer Forest in the wild, Sabah (Malaysian Borneo) - this species is tenuously present in Sabah, known from only a couple of small islands; the subspecies which occurs here is probably G. t. torquatus from the Philippines.


Selingan Turtle Island - ZooChat



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Woodford's Rail Gallirallus woodfordi
Three subspecies: immaculatus, tertius, woodfordi (treated as three full species in HBW and BOW)

Often placed in a separate genus, Nesoclopeus, along with the Fijian Bar-winged Rail G. poecilopterus.


G. w. immaculatus is found on Santa Isabel Island in the Solomon Islands.

G. w. tertius is found on Bougainville Island in the Solomon Islands.

G. w. woodfordi is found on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands, and also reported from Malaita and Choiseul.



This species is not represented in the Zoochat galleries.

 

Habroptila
One species, not represented in the Zoochat galleries.

Generally treated as a monotypic genus, but the species has been placed under Rallus in the past. HBW Alive says "probably derived from Amaurornis; believed to be close to Megacrex" but the BOW and the Clements Checklist places it into Gallirallus.



Drummer Rail Habroptila wallacii
Monotypic.


Probably endemic to the island of Halmahera in the Moluccas (Indonesia), although it has also been recorded on the neighbouring island of Obi.

 

Lewinia
Four species, one of which is represented in the Zoochat galleries.


This genus is very closely related to Dryolimnas of the Indian Ocean (which contains one extant species and two known extinct species) although the species in that genus are much larger. Some authors have merged the two genera, in which case all species would be in Lewinia as that is the older name (which hasn't stopped some from placing them all incorrectly into Dryolimnas).


Note that in this thread I am placing the Slaty-breasted Rail in Lewinia rather than Gallirallus as that seems to have become the accepted change. However in Barry Taylor's 2010 book "Rails: A Guide to the Rails, Crakes, Gallinules, and Coots of the World" he describes the Slaty-breasted Rail and Lewinia species as having only a "strong superficial similarity".



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Brown-banded Rail Lewinia mirifica
Monotypic



Endemic to Luzon in the Philippines.



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Auckland Islands Rail Lewinia muelleri
Monotypic



Endemic to the Auckland Islands in the subantarctic, south of New Zealand.



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Lewin's Rail Lewinia pectoralis
Eight subspecies: alberti, brachipus, capta, clelandi, exsul, insula, mayri and pectoralis.

The Brown-banded Rail L. mirifica and Auckland Islands Rail L. muelleri were also formerly treated as subspecies of L. pectoralis.



L. p. alberti is from the mountains of southeastern New Guinea.

L. p. brachipus is from Tasmania.

L. p. capta is from the mountains of central New Guinea.

L. p. clelandi is from southwestern Australia.

L. p. exsul is from Flores in the Lesser Sundas.

L. p. insulsa is from New Guinea's Herzog Mountains.

L. p. mayri is from New Guinea's Arfak Weyland Mountains.

L. p. pectoralis is from eastern Australia.



Photo by @Hix in the wild, Australia - Tasmanian subspecies brachipus.


Lewin's Rail - ZooChat



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Slaty-breasted Rail Lewinia striata
Eight subspecies, but probably not all are valid: albiventer, gularis, jouyi, nicobariensis, obscurior, paterma, striata and taiwana.



L. s. albiventer is from south and southeast Asia (India and Sri Lanka to Yunnan and Thailand).

L. s. gularis is from Indochina through Peninsular Malaysia to the Greater Sundas.

L. s. jouyi is from southeastern China and Hainan.

L. s. nicobariensis is from Nicobar Islands.

L. s. obscurior is from Andaman Islands.

L. s. paraterma is from Samar Island in the Philippines (but should probably be placed in L. s. striata).

L. s. striata is from the Philippines, the Sulu Islands and north Borneo.

L. s. taiwana is from Taiwan.

 

Rallus
About fourteen species, of which five are represented in the Zoochat galleries (marked with asterisks in the list below).


Ecuadorian Rail Rallus aequatorialis
Austral Rail Rallus antarcticus
*Western Water Rail Rallus aquaticus
African Rail Rallus caerulescens
*Clapper Rail Rallus crepitans
*King Rail Rallus elegans
Eastern Water Rail Rallus indicus
*Virginia Rail Rallus limicola
Mangrove Rail Rallus longirostris
Madagascar Rail Rallus madagascariensis
*Ridgway's Rail Rallus obsoletus
Bogota Rail Rallus semiplumbeus
Mexican Rail Rallus tenuirostris
Plain-flanked Rail Rallus wetmorei



As is standard with rails, there are differences in taxonomic status according to author. From the species listed above, the Eastern Water Rail R. indicus was until recently (and still, by some authors) treated as a subspecies of the Western Water Rail R. aquaticus; the American species R. aequatorialis, R. antarcticus, R. limicola, and R. semiplumbeus were formerly all treated as being conspecific; and likewise R. crepitans, R. elegans, R. longirostris, R. obsoletus, R. tenuirostris, and R. wetmorei have all been treated in the past as either being conspecific or, more commonly, as two closely-related species (the Clapper Rail R. longirostris and the King Rail R. elegans).

When all of these were lumped then the total number of species in the genus was reduced to just six:

Water Rail Rallus aquaticus
African Rail Rallus caerulescens
Madagascar Rail Rallus madagascariensis
Virginia Rail Rallus limicola
Clapper Rail Rallus longirostris
King Rail Rallus elegans