Hypotaenidia is a genus of birds in the family Rallidae. The genus is considered separate by the IOC and IUCN, while The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World / eBird consider the species to be part of Gallirallus. Since the mid-19th century, when these rather terrestrial birds were recognized to form a genus distinct from the decidedly aquatic Rallus, the validity of Hypotaenidia has been disputed.
Only in the 2010s has this question be resolved to some degree of satisfaction. While the present genus does indeed belong to the Gallirallus group in tribe Rallini of subfamily Rallinae, it stands apart from the numerous more basal lineages therein, and constitutes a well-distinct clade of smallish to mid-sized species distributed from Sahul far into the Pacific – across a range of at least 9,000 by 8,000 km (almost 6,000 by 5,000 miles). Like their larger more ancestral relatives, they readily evolve into flightless island endemics in the absence of terrestrial predators; however, their smaller bulk makes it easier for them to get airborne, and more prone to be swept away by strong winds. Consequently, they are (together with the Zapornia crakes) suspected to make up much of the prehistoric diversity of flightless rails of the oceanic islands of the Pacific.[2][3]
Hypotaenidia rails are typically a brownish hue on the upperside; this can range from almost beige to blackish in lightness and generally tends toward reddish hues, and many species have light spots or stripes on the remiges or the entire wings; often, conspicuous light stripes run above and/or below the eyes. The underside is barred black-and-white in almost all members of this genus; unlike in the Zapornia crakes (which are also smaller on average, but with some overlap, and generally similar in coloration) this barring is not restricted to the area between legs and tail, but extends across the entire belly up to the neck. A few species are so cryptic that they appear almost uniformly medium to blackish-brown at a distance. The eyes are red to chestnut, and the bill and legs are either more or less bright red to yellowish, or blackish, usually in line with the overall darkness of the plumage.[4]
^"Rallidae". aviansystematics.org. The Trust for Avian Systematics. Retrieved 2023-07-27.
^Cite error: The named reference kirchman2012 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference garciaretal2014 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Taylor, P. Barry & van Perlo, Ber (1998): Rails: a guide to the rails, crakes, gallinules, and coots of the world (Helm Identification Guides). Yale University Press, New Haven. ISBN 0-300-07758-0.
Hypotaenidia is a genus of birds in the family Rallidae. The genus is considered separate by the IOC and IUCN, while The Clements Checklist of Birds of...
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