The Tahiti rail, Tahitian red-billed rail, or Pacific red-billed rail is an extinct species of rail that lived on Tahiti. It was first recorded during James Cook's second voyage around the world (1772–1775), on which it was illustrated by Georg Forster and described by Johann Reinhold Forster. No specimens have been preserved. As well as the documentation by the Forsters, there have been claims that the bird also existed on the nearby island of Mehetia. The Tahiti rail appears to have been closely related to, and perhaps derived from, the buff-banded rail, and has also been historically confused with the Tongan subspecies of that bird.
Region
South Pacific (Society Islands)
Typical Environment
The species was confined to Tahiti in the Society Islands, with historical claims suggesting it may also have occurred on nearby Mehetia. It likely occupied dense lowland vegetation, including forest edges, thickets, and wetland margins where cover is abundant. As with many island rails, it probably foraged on the ground in leaf litter and along stream sides. Its restricted island range and ground-dwelling habits would have made it vulnerable to invasive predators and habitat change.
Altitude Range
Sea level to low elevations (exact range unknown)
Climate Zone
Tropical
Known only from 18th‑century accounts and illustrations made during James Cook’s second voyage, the Tahiti rail is an extinct island rail from Tahiti, possibly also Mehetia. No physical specimens survive, and its exact appearance and measurements are uncertain. It was likely closely related to, and perhaps derived from, the buff-banded rail, and has been confused historically with that species’ Tongan subspecies. Extinction likely followed human arrival, habitat alteration, and predation by introduced mammals.
James Cook's ships off Tahiti during his second voyage when this rail was found, William Hodges, 1776
1907 illustration by John Gerrard Keulemans, based on Forster's plate; the legs are depicted too brightly red.
The Tongan subspecies of the buff-banded rail, which has been confused with the Tahiti rail
