Hawaiian Rail
Encyclopedia
The Hawaiian Rail Hawaiian Spotted Rail, or Hawaiian Crake was a somewhat enigmatic species
of diminutive rail
that lived on Big Island
of Hawaii
, but is now extinct. It was a flightless bird
that was apparently found in shrubland and secondary growth on abandoned fields and in times of danger had the habit of hiding in Polynesian Rat
burrows. Specimens are known or assumed to be from an area which roughly corresponds to the middle elevations of today's Puna district
around the present settlement of Mountain View, below the primary rainforest. A dark form and a lighter, spotted one are known (see below).
The first collections were of individuals of the lighter form, of which today 5 specimens seem to exist: in the Naturalis
in Leiden (one: RMNH 87450), in the American Museum of Natural History
and New York City
(1)). Of the dark form, several additional individuals are present in collections in Cambridge
(Museum of Natural History, 1), London
(Natural History Museum
, 1), Vienna
, New York City
(1) and Honolulu (Bishop Museum
, 2). One 1778 painting by William Ellis (plate 70) depicts a light bird, possibly the Leiden specimen (which was apparently collected in late January/early February, 1779), and in more recent times, subfossil
bones have also been recovered.
The native
name for the bird was apparently moho, said to refer to a small "bird that crows in the grass". The name iao or iao was claimed to refer to a moho-like but smaller bird; it is not clear whether this bird was the distinctive lighter form or the extinct unnamed small rail (see below). The bird is referenced in the old Hawaiian proverb Aohe mea nāna e hoopuhili, he moho no ka lā makani which means roughly "nothing can blow him off course, he is like a moho in the wind"; it was used to indicate admiration for an undaunted or determined person (as the bird was unable to fly, it was not affected by the wind). This is not to be confused with the taxonomical
name Moho
, which are the ōō; also from Hawaii, also extinct, but completely unrelated birds.
and Kauai
seem possible given the history of the specimens' collection, and only on the latter island is a similar-sized species now known to have once existed. However, the bones from Kauai are in the upper size range of those found of sandwichensis, while the specimens of the lighter form are all of smaller birds.
On the Big Island, a smaller species of Porzana is now known from subfossil
bones found on the southwestern slope of Mauna Kea
, but this bird was only the size of a Laysan Crake; it may have been the bird named iao or iao, which would place its extinction at a relatively recent date. In addition, there are some bones of a third species, approximately 15% larger than P. sandwichensis, found near Kailua-Kona
.
The generally accepted theory is that the lighter birds represent immatures, and certainly only such specimens have been described as young birds (the Hanover specimen is labeled as "juvenile
"), but since the exact collection localities are not known with sufficient detail, only DNA
analysis could resolve this question, particularly since the recovered bone material can also be expected to yield analyzable DNA fragments.
At any rate, both light and dark birds are today treated as a single species, the junior synonyms of which are as follows:
The last 5 names refer to the dark form. However, Rallus obscurus is something of a mystery as it is generally assumed that at the time of Gmelin's writing, the species was only known from light birds (which were described as sandwichensis on the preceding page of Gmelin's work), but he seems to have seen a specimen of his obscurus at the Leverian Museum (Stresemann, 1950).
expedition; the dark form was supposedly not found at that time (but see above). Apparently, all or at least most specimens of the latter were procured over a short period around 1860 by James D. Mills, the last one in 1864. The last reliable sight record was in 1884, with a doubtful one in 1893; a dedicated search in 1887 failed to find the bird, but as it was rather cryptic, this cannot be taken as unequivocal proof that it was completely extinct by then.
As neither the Small Asian Mongoose nor mosquito
es (which transmit fowlpox
and avian malaria
, both exceptionally lethal to Hawaiian endemic birds) were present on Big Island until 1883 and the 1890s, respectively, this species' extinction was probably caused by introduced European rat
s, cat
s and possibly dog
s. Hunting, sometimes assumed to have played a major part, probably was not significant as the bird was protected by a kapu
which prohibited hunting except by alii
until 1819. After that, the few specimens that were collected suggest it was not extensively hunted even after the kapu were abolished.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of diminutive rail
Rallidae
The rails, or Rallidae, are a large cosmopolitan family of small to medium-sized birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity and the family also includes the crakes, coots, and gallinules...
that lived on Big Island
Hawaii (island)
The Island of Hawaii, also called the Big Island or Hawaii Island , is a volcanic island in the North Pacific Ocean...
of Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, but is now extinct. It was a flightless bird
Flightless bird
Flightless birds are birds which lack the ability to fly, relying instead on their ability to run or swim. They are thought to have evolved from flying ancestors. There are about forty species in existence today, the best known being the ostrich, emu, cassowary, rhea, kiwi, and penguin...
that was apparently found in shrubland and secondary growth on abandoned fields and in times of danger had the habit of hiding in Polynesian Rat
Polynesian Rat
The Polynesian Rat, or Pacific Rat , 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 originates in Southeast Asia but, like its cousins, has become well travelled – infiltrating Fiji and most Polynesian...
burrows. Specimens are known or assumed to be from an area which roughly corresponds to the middle elevations of today's Puna district
Puna, Hawaii
Puna is one of the nine districts in Hawaii County, Big Island, Hawaii. The District of Puna is located on the easternmost portion of the island and shares borders to the north with the District of South Hilo and a border to the west with the District of Kaū...
around the present settlement of Mountain View, below the primary rainforest. A dark form and a lighter, spotted one are known (see below).
The first collections were of individuals of the lighter form, of which today 5 specimens seem to exist: in the Naturalis
Naturalis
Naturalis is the national natural history museum of the Netherlands, based in Leiden. It originated from the merger of the Rijksmuseum van Natuurlijke Historie and the Rijksmuseum van Geologie en Mineralogie in 1984. In 1986 it was decided that the museum had to become a public museum and a new...
in Leiden (one: RMNH 87450), in the American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History , located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States, is one of the largest and most celebrated museums in the world...
and New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
(1)). Of the dark form, several additional individuals are present in collections in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
(Museum of Natural History, 1), London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
(Natural History Museum
Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is one of three large museums on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, England . Its main frontage is on Cromwell Road...
, 1), Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
(1) and Honolulu (Bishop Museum
Bishop Museum
The Bishop Museum , is a museum of history and science in the historic Kalihi district of Honolulu on the Hawaiian island of O'ahu...
, 2). One 1778 painting by William Ellis (plate 70) depicts a light bird, possibly the Leiden specimen (which was apparently collected in late January/early February, 1779), and in more recent times, subfossil
Subfossil
Subfossil refers to remains whose fossilization process is not complete, either for lack of time or because the conditions in which they were buried were not optimal for fossilization....
bones have also been recovered.
The native
Hawaiian language
The Hawaiian language is a Polynesian language that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language of the state of Hawaii...
name for the bird was apparently moho, said to refer to a small "bird that crows in the grass". The name iao or iao was claimed to refer to a moho-like but smaller bird; it is not clear whether this bird was the distinctive lighter form or the extinct unnamed small rail (see below). The bird is referenced in the old Hawaiian proverb Aohe mea nāna e hoopuhili, he moho no ka lā makani which means roughly "nothing can blow him off course, he is like a moho in the wind"; it was used to indicate admiration for an undaunted or determined person (as the bird was unable to fly, it was not affected by the wind). This is not to be confused with the taxonomical
Taxonomy
Taxonomy is the science of identifying and naming species, and arranging them into a classification. The field of taxonomy, sometimes referred to as "biological taxonomy", revolves around the description and use of taxonomic units, known as taxa...
name Moho
Moho (genus)
Moho is a genus of extinct birds in the Hawaiian bird family, Mohoidae, that were endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. Members of the genus are known as Ōō in the Hawaiian language. Their plumage was generally striking glossy black; some species had yellowish axillary tufts and other black outer...
, which are the ōō; also from Hawaii, also extinct, but completely unrelated birds.
Systematics
Considerable confusion has been created by the existence of two distinct forms. While it cannot be completely excluded that early specimens were collected on another island, only OahuOahu
Oahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...
and Kauai
Kauai
Kauai or Kauai, known as Tauai in the ancient Kaua'i dialect, is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of , it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago, and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle",...
seem possible given the history of the specimens' collection, and only on the latter island is a similar-sized species now known to have once existed. However, the bones from Kauai are in the upper size range of those found of sandwichensis, while the specimens of the lighter form are all of smaller birds.
On the Big Island, a smaller species of Porzana is now known from subfossil
Subfossil
Subfossil refers to remains whose fossilization process is not complete, either for lack of time or because the conditions in which they were buried were not optimal for fossilization....
bones found on the southwestern slope of Mauna Kea
Mauna Kea
Mauna Kea is a volcano on the island of Hawaii. Standing above sea level, its peak is the highest point in the state of Hawaii. However, much of the mountain is under water; when measured from its oceanic base, Mauna Kea is over tall—significantly taller than Mount Everest...
, but this bird was only the size of a Laysan Crake; it may have been the bird named iao or iao, which would place its extinction at a relatively recent date. In addition, there are some bones of a third species, approximately 15% larger than P. sandwichensis, found near Kailua-Kona
Kailua-Kona, Hawai'i
Kailua is a census-designated place in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, in the North Kona District of the Island of Hawaii. The population was 11,975 at the 2010 census. It is the center of commerce and of the tourist industry on West Hawaii...
.
The generally accepted theory is that the lighter birds represent immatures, and certainly only such specimens have been described as young birds (the Hanover specimen is labeled as "juvenile
Juvenile (organism)
A juvenile is an individual organism that has not yet reached its adult form, sexual maturity or size. Juveniles sometimes look very different from the adult form, particularly in terms of their colour...
"), but since the exact collection localities are not known with sufficient detail, only DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
analysis could resolve this question, particularly since the recovered bone material can also be expected to yield analyzable DNA fragments.
At any rate, both light and dark birds are today treated as a single species, the junior synonyms of which are as follows:
- Rallus sandwichensis GmelinJohann Friedrich GmelinJohann Friedrich Gmelin was a German naturalist, botanist, entomologist, herpetologist and malacologist.- Education :Johann Friedrich Gmelin was born as the eldest son of Philipp Friedrich Gmelin in 1748 in Tübingen...
, 1789 - Rallus obscurus Gmelin, 1789
- Pennula millei (lapsus) DoleSanford B. DoleSanford Ballard Dole was a lawyer and jurist in the Hawaiian Islands as a kingdom, protectorate, republic and territory...
, 1878 - Pennula millsi
- Pennula wilsoni FinschOtto FinschFriedrich Hermann Otto Finsch was a German ethnographer, naturalist and colonial explorer.-Biography:...
, 1898 - Pennula ecaudata King
The last 5 names refer to the dark form. However, Rallus obscurus is something of a mystery as it is generally assumed that at the time of Gmelin's writing, the species was only known from light birds (which were described as sandwichensis on the preceding page of Gmelin's work), but he seems to have seen a specimen of his obscurus at the Leverian Museum (Stresemann, 1950).
Extinction
Specimens of the light form were collected in 1778 on the third CookJames Cook
Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
expedition; the dark form was supposedly not found at that time (but see above). Apparently, all or at least most specimens of the latter were procured over a short period around 1860 by James D. Mills, the last one in 1864. The last reliable sight record was in 1884, with a doubtful one in 1893; a dedicated search in 1887 failed to find the bird, but as it was rather cryptic, this cannot be taken as unequivocal proof that it was completely extinct by then.
As neither the Small Asian Mongoose nor mosquito
Mosquito
Mosquitoes are members of a family of nematocerid flies: the Culicidae . The word Mosquito is from the Spanish and Portuguese for little fly...
es (which transmit fowlpox
Fowlpox
Fowlpox is a worldwide disease of poultry caused by viruses of the family Poxviridae and the genus Avipoxvirus. The viruses causing fowlpox are distinct from one another but antigenically similar, possible hosts including chickens, turkeys, quail, canaries, pigeons, and many other species of...
and avian malaria
Avian malaria
Avian malaria is a parasitic disease of birds.-Etiology:Avian malaria is most notably caused by Plasmodium relictum, a protist that infects birds in tropical regions...
, both exceptionally lethal to Hawaiian endemic birds) were present on Big Island until 1883 and the 1890s, respectively, this species' extinction was probably caused by introduced European rat
Rat
Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus...
s, cat
Cat
The cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...
s and possibly dog
Dog
The domestic dog is a domesticated form of the gray wolf, a member of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. The term is used for both feral and pet varieties. The dog may have been the first animal to be domesticated, and has been the most widely kept working, hunting, and companion animal in...
s. Hunting, sometimes assumed to have played a major part, probably was not significant as the bird was protected by a kapu
Kapu
Kapu refers to the ancient Hawaiian code of conduct of laws and regulations. The kapu system was universal in lifestyle, gender roles, politics, religion, etc. An offense that was kapu was often a corporal offense, but also often denoted a threat to spiritual power, or theft of mana. Kapus were...
which prohibited hunting except by alii
Ali'i
Alii is a word in the Polynesian language denoting chiefly status in ancient Hawaii and the Samoa Islands. A similar word with the same concept is found in other Polynesian societies. In the Cook Islands, an ariki is a high chief and the House of Ariki is a parliamentary house...
until 1819. After that, the few specimens that were collected suggest it was not extensively hunted even after the kapu were abolished.
External links
- 3D view of specimen RMNH 87450 at the NaturalisNaturalisNaturalis is the national natural history museum of the Netherlands, based in Leiden. It originated from the merger of the Rijksmuseum van Natuurlijke Historie and the Rijksmuseum van Geologie en Mineralogie in 1984. In 1986 it was decided that the museum had to become a public museum and a new...
, Leiden (requires QuickTimeQuickTimeQuickTime is an extensible proprietary multimedia framework developed by Apple Inc., capable of handling various formats of digital video, picture, sound, panoramic images, and interactivity. The classic version of QuickTime is available for Windows XP and later, as well as Mac OS X Leopard and...
browser plugin)
- Natural History Museum: William Ellis' plate 70