Livezey’s rail was a rallid that existed 19–16 Ma (early Miocene) along the shore of the palaeo-lake Manuherikia. Fossils of this species are known from sites at Mata Creek and Manuherikia River, St Bathans, Central Otago.

The holotype (NMNZ S.47156, associated tibiotarsus, tarsometatarsus and several phalanges) and paratype (NMNZ S.53383, proximal left tarsometatarsus) of the species are held at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington. Several more fossils are referred to the species, which are held Te Papa and Canterbury Museum.

Livezey’s rail is much rarer in the fossil record than the Bannockburn crake, though it is unknown if this reflects a genuine difference in abundance or a bias in preservation. The leg bones of Livezey’s rail were a similar size to those of the extant banded rail/moho pererū, but with comparatively small wing bones that indicate this fossil species was flightless. Livezey’s rail was notably larger than the Bannockburn crake, which indicates that these species may have coexisted by exploiting different niches.

Due to the rarity of Livezey’s rail in the fossil record, the phylogenetic position of the species is poorly understood. It has been observed to share some features in common with the Bannockburn crake, as well as modern and recently extinct rails such as the weka, Chatham Island rail, and snipe-rail, but these are most likely related to flightlessness rather than indicative of a relationship.

The genus name is a combination of the Latin words ‘litore’ (shore) and ‘rallus’ (rail), reflecting the fact that the fossils of this species were found in lacustrine sediments and indicating its likely ecology. The species name honours the late ornithologist Bradley C. Livezey, who extensively studied the phylogenetic relationships and evolution of flightlessness in many kinds of waterbirds, including rails.

References

Mather, E.K.; Tennyson, A.J.D.; Scofield, R.P.; De Pietri, V.L.; Hand, S.J.; Archer, M.; Handley, W.D. & Worthy, T.H. 2019. Flightless rails (Aves: Rallidae) from the early Miocene St Bathans Fauna, Otago, New Zealand. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 17: 423–449.

Recommended citation

Mather, E.K.. 2022. Livezey's rail. In Miskelly, C.M. (ed.) New Zealand Birds Online. www.nzbirdsonline.org.nz