The Auckland rail (''Lewinia muelleri'') is a small nearly flightless

rail Rail or rails may refer to: Rail transport *Rail transport and related matters *Rail (rail transport) or railway lines, the running surface of a railway Arts and media Film * ''Rails'' (film), a 1929 Italian film by Mario Camerini * ''Rail'' ( ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the

Auckland Islands The Auckland Islands (Māori: ''Motu Maha'' "Many islands" or ''Maungahuka'' "Snowy mountains") are an archipelago of New Zealand, lying south of the South Island. The main Auckland Island, occupying , is surrounded by smaller Adams Island, ...

460 km south of

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. It is somewhat of a

biogeographical Biogeography is the study of the distribution of species and ecosystems in geographic space and through geological time. Organisms and biological communities often vary in a regular fashion along geographic gradients of latitude, elevation, i ...

anomaly, being the only species in the genus ''

Lewinia ''Lewinia'' is a genus of birds in the family Rallidae. The genus was erected by the English zoologist George Robert Gray in 1855 with Lewin's rail ''Lewinia pectoralis'' as the type species. The genus name is from a synonym of the type specie ...

'' to have reached the islands of New Zealand, skipping over the main islands to reach the remote Auckland group. Its closest relative is

Lewin's rail Lewin's rail (''Lewinia pectoralis'') is a species of bird in the family Rallidae. It is also known as the water rail, Lewin's water rail, Lewin's grind rail, slate-breasted rail, slate-breasted water rail, pectoral rail, pectoral water rail, sho ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. The species is currently restricted to two islands in the Auckland group, Adams Island and

Disappointment Island Disappointment Island is one of seven uninhabited islands in the Auckland Islands archipelago, in New Zealand. It is south of the country's main South Island and from the northwest end of Auckland Island. It is home to a large colony of white ...

. The Auckland rail is a small rail with chestnut back

plumage Plumage ( "feather") is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, ...

and a grey breast. The flanks are barred black and white and the head is red-brown, with a red

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

. It is smaller than the Australian Lewins' rail. There are conflicting reports about its ability to fly. Early accounts suggested it could; recent researchers have found little evidence for this. If the species is able to fly, it does so very infrequently. Auckland rails have a variety of

calls Call or Calls may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * Call, a type of betting in poker * Call, in the game of contract bridge, a bid, pass, double, or redouble in the bidding stage Music and dance * Call (band), from Lahore, Paki ...

, the most common being a ''crex'' call made at one second intervals 10 or more times in a row. The function of the calls is unknown. Little is known about the reproductive biology of the Auckland rail. The few nests that have been found contained clutches of two eggs, probably laid in early November. The eggs are cream coloured with red, brown and grey spots. The Auckland rail is highly secretive and was considered to be

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

for many years before its rediscovery. The population of about 1500 birds is currently stable on the two islands it survives on. It is thought to have become extinct on the main

due to the presence of introduced

feral cat A feral cat or a stray cat is an unowned domestic cat (''Felis catus'') that lives outdoors and avoids human contact: it does not allow itself to be handled or touched, and usually remains hidden from humans. Feral cats may breed over dozens ...

s and

pig The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus s ...

s; it is hoped the eventual removal of these from the islands will allow for reintroductions to other islands in the group. The species is currently considered vulnerable by the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

and

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

due to the possibility of rats or other predators reaching the two islands it survives on.

References

*BirdLife International (2016
Species factsheet: ''Lewinia muelleri''.
Downloaded from on 8/Jul/2016 *

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet.
*Auckland rail discussed in

RNZ Radio New Zealand ( mi, Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa), commonly known as Radio NZ or simply RNZ, is a New Zealand public-service radio broadcaster and Crown entity that was established under the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. It operates news and cu ...

Critter of the Week ''Critter of the Week'' is a weekly RNZ National programme about endangered and neglected native plants and animals of New Zealand. Beginning in 2015, ''Critter of the Week'' is an approximately 15-minute discussion between Nicola Toki of the ...

''
30 August 2022
{{Taxonbar, from=Q758663

Auckland rail The Auckland rail (''Lewinia muelleri'') is a small nearly flightless rail endemic to the Auckland Islands 460 km south of New Zealand. It is somewhat of a biogeographical anomaly, being the only species in the genus '' Lewinia'' to have re ...

Birds of the Auckland Islands

Endemic birds of New Zealand