Saint Helena Rail (Aphanocrex podarces)

The Saint Helena Rail species was described in 1963 on the basis of subfossil remains that were found on the island of Saint Helena in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

The species was amongst the largest rails, reaching a size of around 50 cm, it had relatively large wings despite being definetly flightless, it furthermore had very large feet and quite elongated claws. [1]

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The Saint Helena Rail is now thought to be closer related to the gallinules than to the other rallid forms known from the Atlantic islands.

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References:

[1] Storrs L. Olson: Paleornithology of St. Helena Island, south Atlantic Ocean. Smithsonian Contributions to Paleobiology 23. 1975

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edited: 07.02.2020