Rascón Nkulengu

Himantornis haematopus

Un rascón grande y pardo con la cara y la garganta más pálidas, patas rojo sangre, ojos rojos y un pico pardo con la punta más clara. Podría confundirse con un francolín, pero note la cola corta y su comportamiento esquivo. Se encuentra en bosques densos de tierras bajas y manglares, donde usualmente, aunque no siempre, ocurre cerca del agua. Nombrado por sus llamadas distintivas, “nku-nku-lengu”, cada llamada dura aproximadamente un segundo. Llama principalmente de noche, a veces durante varios minutos seguidos.

Identificación

The Nkulengu rail (Himantornis haematopus) is a species of bird in the family Rallidae. It belongs to the monotypic genus Himantornis. For long, this singular rail was considered a member of a distinct subfamily Himantornithinae. This was based on the assumption that it was a sort of "living fossil", as it resembles other Gruiformes rather than other rails in many traits. But as it seems, the supposed plesiomorphies are actually atavistic or otherwise re-evolved traits in reaction to its African rainforest habitat. Its closest living relatives seem to be the Asian genera Amaurornis, Gallicrex, Megacrex, and the widespread African Aenigmatolimnas, with Megacrex and Himantornis representing ancient and ecologically quite similar lineages at the extreme ends of the group's distribution. However a later genetic study found that it was basal to the radiation containing Porzana, Tribonyx, Gallinula and Fulica. It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo, and Uganda. It is notoriously difficult to visually observe, preferring to hide, but has a loud and distinctive call often made in pairs.

Taxonomía

Género: Himantornis; familia: Rallidae; orden: Gruiformes.

Nombre científico
Himantornis haematopus
Autoridad
Hartlaub, 1855
Orden
Gruiformes
Familia
Sarothruridae
Género
Himantornis

Distribución y hábitat

Migración
Especie residente

Comportamiento

Patrón migratorio: Especie residente.

Conservación

Tendencia poblacional: en declive.

Tendencia poblacional
en declive

Fotos

Distribución

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