The

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 ...

Wake Island rail (''Hypotaenidia wakensis'') was a 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'' ( ...

and the only native land bird on the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...

atoll of Wake. It was found on the islands of Wake and Wilkes, but not on Peale, which is separated from the others by a channel of about 100 meters. It was hunted to extinction during the Second World War.

Description

The adult bird had a length of . The wing spread was between 8.5 and . The length of the tail was . The culmen was between 2.5 and and the length of the tarsus was 3.3 to . It was closely related to the

buff-banded rail The buff-banded rail (''Hypotaenidia philippensis'') is a distinctively coloured, highly dispersive, medium-sized rail of the rail family, Rallidae. This species comprises several subspecies found throughout much of Australasia and the south-we ...

(''Hypotaenidia philippensis'') from the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, which is able to fly. Genetic evidence indicates that amongst ''

Gallirallus ''Gallirallus'' is a genus of rails that live in the Australasian-Pacific region. The genus is characterised by an ability to colonise relatively small and isolated islands and thereafter to evolve flightless forms, many of which became extinct ...

'' species it is most closely related to the

Roviana rail The Roviana rail (''Hypotaenidia rovianae'') is a species of bird in the family Rallidae. It is endemic to the Western Province (Solomon Islands) Western Province is the largest of the nine provinces of Solomon Islands. The area is renowned ...

and the buff-banded rail itself. Its appearance was dark greyish brown on the upperparts as well as on the crown, the lores and the cheeks. It was also characterized by ash brown underparts with striking narrow white bars on the belly, the breast, and the flanks. The upper throat and the chin were whitish. A grey superciliary was drawn from the chin over the top of the eyes to the bill. The bill, legs and feet had a brown hue.

Ecology

The ecology of this species is poorly known, though a review published in 2011 has shed more light on its life and subsequent extinction. It was numerous at the time of Lionel Walter Rothschild's first scientific description in 1903. The Wake Island rail inhabited ''

Cordia subcordata ''Cordia subcordata'' is a species of flowering tree in the borage family, Boraginaceae, that occurs in eastern Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, northern Australia and the Pacific Islands (including Hawaii). The plant is known by a variety ...

'' scrubs and fed on molluscs, insects, worms and seeds which it found by digging up leaves and soil with its bill. Since its habitat offered no natural source of fresh water, it is assumed that the bird was able to subsist without drinking. The breeding period started with courtship and copulations in late July, with actual nesting not taking place until mid-August. The nest itself was a simple saucer-shaped depression on the ground. Under favourable conditions it may have managed to rear two broods a year. Small groups nested cooperatively, with prolonged parental care and feeding by the adults, most likely so that they could defend their young from predation by hermit crabs ('' Coenobita'') and the

Polynesian rat The Polynesian rat, Pacific rat or little rat (''Rattus exulans''), known to the Māori as ''kiore'', is the third most widespread species of rat in the world behind the brown rat and black rat. The Polynesian rat originated in Southeast Asia, a ...

(''Rattus exulans''), with which it was able to co-exist. When ornithologist

Alexander Wetmore Frank Alexander Wetmore (June 18, 1886 – December 7, 1978) was an American ornithologist and avian paleontologist. He was the sixth Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. Early life and education The son of a Country Physician, Frank Ale ...

observed the species in 1923, he described it as very curious, but quick to flee into cover when disturbed. Its call consisted of a gentle cluck or a low chattering sound.

Extinction

The Wake Island rail is classified as extinct. Its inability to fly and the island's geographic isolation, combined with the bird's inquisitiveness and lack of fear of humans, made it an easy victim of over-hunting. It is now known that the extinction event occurred specifically between 1942 and 1945. This was a direct result of the presence of thousands of starving Japanese troops stranded on the island after a U.S. blockade of the island took place as a direct result of the Japanese invasion and occupation of Wake Island in December 1941, in addition combined with the inevitable habitat destruction resulting from military altercations and extensive aerial bombardment by the Japanese and U.S. during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

References

*Bryan, E. H. Jr. (1959): Notes on the geography and natural history of Wake Island. ''Atoll Res. Bull.'' 66: 1-22
PDF fulltext
*Day, David (1981): ''The Doomsday Book of Animals''. Ebury Press, London, *Fuller, Errol (2000): ''Extinct Birds''. Oxford University Press, *Rothschild, Walter (1903): ''Hypotaenidia wakensis'' n. sp. '' Bull. Brit. Ornithol. Club'' 13(99): 75. *Wetmore, Alexander (1996): ake Island and Wake Island Rail''In:'' Olson, Storrs L., History and Ornithological Journals of the Tanager Expedition of 1923 to the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, Johnston and Wake Islands. ''Atoll Res. Bull.'' 433: 103–115, 184
PDF fulltext
*BirdLife International (2012) Species factsheet: Gallirallus wakensis. (Retrieved 06/11/2012

*Olson, S. L.; Rauzon, M. J. (2011): The extinct Wake Island Rail ''Gallirallus wakensis'': a comprehensive species account based on museum specimens and archival records. ''Wilson Journal of Ornithology'' 123(4): 663–68
Abstract
{{Taxonbar, from=Q541492 Extinct flightless birds Hypotaenidia Bird extinctions since 1500 Wake Island Tanager Expedition Birds described in 1903 Extinct birds of Oceania World War II casualties Species endangered by use as food Species endangered by warfare Species made extinct by human activities