The Avifauna of Micronesia, Its Origin, Evolution, and Distribution

by Rollin H. Baker

Eulabeornis forsteri Gray (part), Hand-list Birds, 3, 1871, p. 57 (Marian).

Hypotaenidia philippensis Pelzeln, Ibis, 1873, p. 41 (Marianne Isl.); Salvadori (part), Ornith. Papuasia, 3, 1882, p. 261 (Marianas); Sharpe (part), Cat. Birds British Mus., 23, 1894, p. 39 (Guam).

Rallus philippinus Wiglesworth (part), Abhandl. und Ber. Zool. Mus. Dresden, no. 6, 1890-1891 (1891), p. 59 (Guam).

Hypotaenidia owstoni Hartert, Novit. Zool., 5, 1898, p. 62 (Guam); Safford, Osprey, 1902, pp. 41, 67 (Guam); idem, The Plant World, 7, 1904, p. 265 (Guam); Dubois, Syn. Avium, 2, 1904, p. 961 (Mariannes); Safford, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb., 9, 1905, p. 79 (Guam); Cox, Island of Guam, 1917, p. 21 (Guam); Kuroda, in Momiyama, Birds Micronesia, 1922, p. 42 (Guam); Hartert, Novit. Zool., 34, 1927, p. 22 (Guam); Mathews, Syst. Avium Australasianarum, 1, 1927, p. 84 (Guam); Hand-list Japanese Birds, rev., 1932, p. 196 (Guam).

Hypotaenidia marchei Oustalet, Nouv. Arch. Mus. Hist. Nat., Paris, (3), 8, 1896, p. 32 (Type locality, Guam).

Hypotaenidia oustini Seale, Occ. Papers Bernice P. Bishop Mus., 1, 1901, p. 30 (Guam).

Rallus owstoni Peters, Check-list Birds World, 2, 1934, p. 166 (Guam); Bryan, Guam Rec., vol. 13, no. 2, 1936, p. 15 (Guam); Hand-list Japanese Birds, 3d ed., 1942, p. 220 (Guam); Mayr, Birds Southwest Pacific, 1945, p. 287 (Guam); idem, Audubon Mag., 47, 1945, p. 279 (Guam); Watson, Raven, 17, 1946, p. 41 (Guam); Strophlet, Auk, 1946, p. 536 (Guam); Baker, Smithson. Misc. Coll., vol. 107, no. 15, 1948, p. 48 (Guam).

Geographic range.—Micronesia: Mariana Islands—Guam.

Characters.—Adult: A large rail with head, neck, and eye stripe near "mummy brown" with feathers on sides of neck tipped with "russet"; superciliary stripe to back of neck, throat and upper breast near "mouse gray"; mantle, back, scapulars, and some upper wing-coverts dark olive-brown becoming browner on rump and upper tail-coverts; wings dark with brownish spots and barred with white; lower breast, abdomen, under tail-coverts, and tail blackish with white barrings; bill lead colored; feet dark brown; tibia brown; iris red.

Measurements.—Four adult males measure: wing, 120-123 (121); tail, 46-54 (50); full culmen, 37-43 (41); tarsus, 47-51 (50); six adult females measure: wing, 108-118 (112); tail, 38-46 (42); full culmen, 36-39 (37); tarsus, 43-47 (45).