- Buff-banded Rail
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"Tikling" redirects here. For for the other species referred to by this name, see Barred Rail.
Buff-banded Rail 
Conservation status Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Gruiformes Family: Rallidae Genus: Gallirallus Species: G. philippensis Binomial name Gallirallus philippensis
Linnaeus, 1766Synonyms Rallus philippensis
The Buff-banded Rail, Gallirallus philippensis is a distinctively coloured, highly dispersive, medium-sized rail of the family Rallidae.
This species comprises several subspecies found throughout much of Australasia and the south-west Pacific region, including the Philippines (where it is known as Tikling), New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand (where it is known as the Banded Rail or Moho-pereru in Māori)[1] - and numerous smaller islands, covering a range of latitudes from the tropics to the Subantarctic.
It is a largely terrestrial bird the size of a small mummy domestic chicken, with mainly brown upperparts, finely banded black and white underparts, a white eyebrow, chestnut band running from the bill round the nape, with a buff band on the breast. It utilises a range of moist or wetland habitats with low, dense vegetation for cover. It is usually quite shy but may become very tame and bold in some circumstances, such as in island resorts within the Great Barrier Reef region.[2]
The Buff-banded Rail is an omnivorous scavenger which feeds on a range of terrestrial invertebrates and small vertebrates, seeds, fallen fruit and other vegetable matter, as well as carrion and refuse. Its nest is usually situated in dense grassy or reddy vegetation close to water, with a clutch size of 3-4. Although some island populations may be threatened, or even exterminated, by introduced predators, the species as a whole appears to be safe and its conservation status is considered to be of Least Concern.[3]
Subspecies
Described subspecies include:[4][5][6]
- G. p. admiralitatis (Stresemann, 1929), Admiralty Islands
- G. p. anachoretae (Mayr, 1949), Anchorite Islands, PNG
- G. p. andrewsi (Mathews, 1911), Cocos Buff-banded Rail, endemic to the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Endangered
- G. p. assimilis (G. R. Gray, 1843), New Zealand
- G. p. chlandleri, northern Sulawesi
- G. p. christophori (Mayr, 1938), Solomon Islands
- G. p. dieffenbachi, endemic to the Chatham Islands, Extinct
- G. p. ecaudatus (J. F. Miller, 1783), (SW Pacific)
- G. p. goodsoni (Mathews, 1911), Samoa and Niue Islands
- G. p. lacustris (Mayr, 1938), (New Guinea)
- G. p. lesouefi (Mathews, 1911), New Hanover, Tabar and Tanga Islands, possibly New Ireland
- G. p. macquariensis (Hutton, 1879), Macquarie Island Rail, endemic to Macquarie Island, Extinct
- G. p. mellori (Mathews, 1912), Tasmania and mainland Australia, Least Concern
- G. p. meyeri (Hartert, 1930), Witu Island, PNG
- G. p. pelewensis (Mayr, 1933), Palau
- G. p. philippensis (Linnaeus, 1766), Philippines, Sulawesi, Buru and Sunda Islands
- G. p. praedo (Mayr, 1949), Skoki Island, Admiralty Islands
- G. p. randi (Mayr & Gilliard, 1951)
- G. p. reductus (Mayr, 1938), northern New Guinea
- G. p. sethsmithi (Mathews, 1911), Vanuatu, Fiji
- G. p. swindellsi (Mathews, 1911), New Caledonia and Loyalty Islands
- G. p. tounelieri Schodde & Naurois, 1982, Coral Sea Islands
- G. p. wahgiensis (Mayr & Gilliard, 1951), central highlands of New Guinea
- G. p. wilkinsoni (Mathews, 1911), Flores
- G. p. xerophilus (Bemmel & Hoogerwerf, 1940), (Indonesia)
- G. p. yorki, Moluccas, western and southern New Guinea
Lady Elliot Island, Qld, Australia
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Extinct Chatham Islands Buff-banded Rail G. p. dieffenbachi
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East Australian race G. p. mellori
References
- ^ Barrie Heather and Hugh Robertson, "The Field Guide to the Birds of New Zealand" (revised edition), Viking, 2005
- ^ Marchant, S.; & Higgins, P.J. (Eds). (1993). Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds. Volume 2: Raptors to Lapwings. Oxford University Press: Melbourne. ISBN 0-19-553069-1
- ^ BirdLife International. (2006). Species factsheet: Gallirallus philippensis. Downloaded [1] on 25 October 2006
- ^ Pied-billed Grebe (Porphyrio podiceps)
- ^ Coates, Brian J. (1985). The Birds of Papua New Guinea. Volume 1: Non-Passerines. Dove Publications: Alderley, Queensland. ISBN 0-9590257-0-7
- ^ Zoonomen - Zoological Nomenclature Resource, 2006.07.04
External links
Categories:- IUCN Red List least concern species
- Gallirallus
- Birds of Australia
- Birds of Southeast Asia
- Birds of New Guinea
- Birds of Indonesia
- Birds of Papua New Guinea
- Birds of South Australia
- Birds of Western Australia
- Birds of New Zealand
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