page_title: List of birds of Kentucky
section_title: Rails, gallinules, and coots
hierarchical_section_title: List of birds of Kentucky / Rails, gallinules, and coots
caption_attribution_description: English: Common Gallinule Gallinula galeata at Twin Lakes in Sunset Beach, North Carolina
context_page_description: This list of birds of Kentucky includes species documented in the U.S. state of Kentucky by the Kentucky Bird Records Committee of the Kentucky Ornithological Society through December 2017. Three additional species have been accepted by the KBRC but not yet added to the published list, and one more species has been documented but not yet assessed by the KBRC. Of these 391 species, 101 are classed as accidental and six were introduced to North America. Four are extinct and three have been extirpated. An additional nine species are hypothetical as defined below. Birds that are considered probable escapees, although they may have been sighted flying free, are not included.
  This list is presented in the taxonomic sequence of the Check-list of North and Middle American Birds, 7th edition through the 61st Supplement, published by the American Ornithological Society. Common and scientific names are also those of the Check-list, except that the common names of families are from the Clements taxonomy because the AOS list does not include them.
  The following tags are used to designate some species:
  Accidental - A species on the Kentucky review list, for which the KOS requires documentation
context_section_description: Order: Gruiformes   Family: Rallidae
  Rallidae is a large family of small to medium-sized birds which includes the rails, crakes, coots, and gallinules. The most typical family members occupy dense vegetation in damp environments near lakes, swamps, or rivers. In general they are shy and secretive birds, making them difficult to observe. Most species have strong legs and long toes which are well adapted to soft uneven surfaces. They tend to have short, rounded wings and tend to be weak fliers. Eight species have been recorded in Kentucky.
  King rail, Rallus elegans (A)
  Virginia rail, Rallus limicola
  Sora, Porzana carolina
  Common gallinule, Gallinula galeata
  American coot, Fulica americana
  Purple gallinule, Porphyrio martinicus (A)
  Yellow rail, Coturnicops noveboracensis (A)
  Black rail, Laterallus jamaicensis (H)
caption: Common gallinule
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