Rallus
Rallus is a genus of wetland birds of the rail family. Sometimes, the genera "Lewinia" and "Gallirallus" are included in it. Six of the species are found in the Americas, and the three species found in Eurasia, Africa and Madagascar are very closely related to each other, suggesting they are descended from a single invasion of a New World ancestor. These are slim, long-billed rails with slender legs. Their laterally flattened bodies are an adaptation to life in wet reedbeds and marshes, enabling them to slip easily through the dense semi-aquatic vegetation. Typically these birds have streaked  brown upperparts, blue-grey on the face or breast, and barred flanks. Only the African rail has a plain back, and the plain-flanked rail lacks any blue-grey in its plumage and has no flank bars. Three endemic South American species are endangered by habitat loss, and the Madagascar rail is becoming rare. Taxonomy. The genus "Rallus" was erected in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his "Systema Naturae". The type species was subsequently designated as the water rail ("Rallus aquaticus"). The genus name "Rallus" comes from the pre-binomial Latin name "Rallus  aquaticus" for the water rail used by English ornithologist Francis Willughby in 1676, and by the English naturalist Eleazar Albin in 1731. The precise etymology of the word "Rallus" is uncertain. Species. The genus contains 14 extant species: Formerly in "Rallus". ""R." sumiderensis" apparently refers to prehistoric remains of the Zapata rail ("Cyanolimnas cerverai").