Rails, Gallinules & Coots

From tiny mouse-like black rails to the purple Takahe the size of a small goose, Rallidae spans a large morphological and ecological range. Most are secretive denizens of reeds, yet the gallinules and coots lead lifestyles more like ducks, out in the open where their rough-and-tumble social behavior is visible to all. It is surprising that such shy residents of isolated habitats are actually migratory, at least in part, and rails have colonized virtually every island on Earth. Volant enough to get there, they often stayed put and started small populations. Flightlessness evolved numerous times, and endemic flightless rail species populated many of the islands of the Pacific; sadly almost all of them are now extinct.