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Tahiti rail facts for kids

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Tahiti rail
Gallirallus pacificus.jpg
Many paintings of the bird.
Conservation status

Extinct  (late 18th - 19th century) (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Class:
Order:
Family:
Genus:
Gallirallus
Binomial name
Gallirallus pacificus

The Tahiti rail (Gallirallus pacificus), also known as the Tahiti red-billed rail, or Pacific red-billed rail, is an extinct species of rail. It once lived on Tahiti. The second voyage of James Cook in 1773 got one. It was described by Johann Reinhold Forster and painted by his son, Georg. The Tahitian name was ebōnā or ōmnā.

Name

Buff-banded Rail LEI Jan08
The related buff-banded rail

Due to confusion about the name, the name Rallus ecaudatus was commonly used in the mid-late 20th century to refer to this bird. This is, however, in error, as the name is a subspecies of the buff-banded rail. Today it is known as Gallirallus philippensis ecaudatus. Also, at least once, the Tahitian bird has been referred to by the scientific name of the Samoan wood rail, Gallinula pacifica, in a major scientific work.

Extinction

Not much is known about the bird's extinction. One idea is that the bird might have been prey to other species. The bird's habitat had active volcanos.

  • Database entry of the bird includes justification for why this species is extinct.
  • Gmelin, Johann Friedrich (1879): [Description of Gallirallus pacificus]. In: Systema Naturae (13th edition) 1, part 2: 717.

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Rascón del Pacífico para niños

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