''Mentocrex'' is a
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...
of birds in the flufftail family,
Sarothruridae. The genus includes two species, both of which are endemic to forests in
Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
.
Species
The genus contains two species.
*
Madagascar wood rail (''Mentocrex kioloides'')
*
Tsingy wood rail
The Tsingy wood rail (''Mentocrex beankaensis'') is a species of bird in the family Sarothruridae that was scientifically described in 2011.
It is endemic to areas with dry deciduous forest and limestone karst in the lowlands of west-centr ...
(''Mentocrex beankaensis'')
These two species were formerly placed in the genus ''
Canirallus'' together with the
grey-throated rail (''Canirallus oculeus''). A molecular genetic study published in 2019 found that the grey-throated rail is not closely related to the Madagascan and tsingy wood rails. The grey-throated rail is related to the
Rallidae while the wood rails are closely related to the ''
Sarothrura''.
References
Bird genera
{{Gruiformes-stub