 |
| Iwo Jima rail | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Gruiformes |
| Family: | Rallidae |
| Genus: | Poliolimnas |
| Species: | |
| Subspecies: | P. c. brevipes |
| Trinomial name | |
| Poliolimnas cinereus brevipes Ingram, 1911 | |
The Iwo Jima rail or white-browed crake (Poliolimnas cinereus brevipes) [1] was a rail native to the island of Iwo Jima. The last reported sightings were in 1924, and the species is believed to be extinct. It was a subspecies of the white-browed crake.
The Iwo Jima rail was coloured dark brown, with black mottles on its back, and a white colouration on its belly. The bird was typically about six inches long. [2]
The species cinereus was typically found in both brackish water and fresh water marshes. Iwo Jima, however, lacked these features, and the Iwo Jima subspecies lived in the brush and tall grass along rivulets on the island, as well as damp places within the original forest cover. [3]
When humans settled the island of Iwo Jima, they cleared away the existing forest to grow sugarcane. The forest clearance reduced the availability of fresh water, which forced the bird to come into the settlements to find water during the dry season. Here the birds often fell pray to cats. Combined with the introduction of rats to the island, this caused the extinction of the bird. [2]
The last specimen of the bird was collected in 1911, and the last reported sightings were by T. T. Moniyama in 1924. [2]
Iwo Jima, known in Japan as Iō Tō, is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at 169 m (554 ft) high.
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The Volcano Islands or Iwo Islands are a group of three Japanese islands south of the Ogasawara Islands that belong to the municipality of Ogasawara, Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. The islands are all active volcanoes lying atop an island arc that stretches south to the Marianas. They have an area of 32.55 square kilometres (12.57 sq mi), and a population of 380. The island of Iwo Jima in the Volcano Islands lies about 1,240 kilometres (770 mi) southeast of Miyazaki.
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The white-browed crake is a species of bird in the family Rallidae. It is found in Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, Fiji, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, India, Malaysia, Micronesia, New Caledonia, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Thailand, and Vanuatu.
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