The Gruiformes are an

order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of ...

containing a considerable number of living and extinct

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

, with a widespread geographical diversity. Gruiform means "crane-like". Traditionally, a number of wading and terrestrial bird families that did not seem to belong to any other order were classified together as Gruiformes. These include 14 species of large

cranes Crane or cranes may refer to: Common meanings * Crane (bird), a large, long-necked bird * Crane (machine), industrial machinery for lifting ** Crane (rail), a crane suited for use on railroads People and fictional characters * Crane (surname), ...

, about 145 species of smaller crakes and rails, as well as a variety of families comprising one to three

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

, such as the

Heliornithidae The Heliornithidae are a small family of tropical birds with webbed lobes on their feet like those of grebes and coots. The family overall are known as finfoots, although one species is known as a sungrebe. The family is composed of three s ...

, the

limpkin The limpkin (''Aramus guarauna''), also called carrao, courlan, and crying bird, is a large wading bird related to rails and cranes, and the only extant species in the family Aramidae. It is found mostly in wetlands in warm parts of the America ...

, or the

Psophiidae ''Psophia'' is a genus of birds restricted to the humid forests of the Amazon and Guiana Shield in South America. It is the only genus in the family Psophiidae. Birds in the genus are commonly known as trumpeters, due to the trumpeting or cack ...

. Other birds have been placed in this order more out of necessity to place them ''somewhere''; this has caused the expanded Gruiformes to lack distinctive

apomorph In phylogenetics, an apomorphy (or derived trait) is a novel character or character state that has evolved from its ancestral form (or plesiomorphy). A synapomorphy is an apomorphy shared by two or more taxa and is therefore hypothesized to hav ...

ies. Recent studies indicate that these "odd Gruiformes" are if at all only loosely related to the cranes, rails, and relatives ("core Gruiformes"). Gallirallus philippensis Lord Howe Island 1

Gallirallus philippensis Lord Howe Island 1

Systematics

There are only two suprafamilial clades (natural groups) among the birds traditionally classified as Gruiformes. Rails (

Rallidae The rails, or Rallidae, are a large cosmopolitan family of small- to medium-sized, ground-living birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity and includes the crakes, coots, and gallinules. Many species are associated with wetlands, altho ...

), flufftails (

Sarothruridae Sarothruridae is a family of small- to medium-sized ground-living birds found mostly in Madagascar and sub-Saharan Africa, with the genus ''Rallicula'' being restricted to New Guinea and the Moluccas. The species in this family were once consider ...

), finfoots and sungrebe (

), adzebills ( Aptornithidae), trumpeters (

), limpkin (

Aramidae Aramidae is a bird family in the order Gruiformes. The limpkin (''Aramus guarauna'') is the only living member of this family, although other species are known from the fossil record, such as '' Aramus paludigrus'' from the Middle Miocene and ''B ...

), and cranes ( Gruidae) compose the suborder Grues and are termed "core-Gruiformes". These are the only true Gruiformes. The suborder Eurypygae includes the

kagu The kagu or cagou (''Rhynochetos jubatus'') is a crested, long-legged, and bluish-grey bird endemic to the dense mountain forests of New Caledonia. It is the only surviving member of the genus ''Rhynochetos'' and the family Rhynochetidae, al ...

(Rhynochetidae) and

sunbittern The sunbittern (''Eurypyga helias'') is a bittern-like bird of tropical regions of the Americas, and the sole member of the family Eurypygidae (sometimes spelled Eurypigidae) and genus ''Eurypyga''. It is found in Central and South America, and ...

(Eurypygidae). These are not even remotely related to Grues. The families of mesites or roatelos (

Mesitornithidae The mesites (Mesitornithidae) are a family of birds that are part of a clade ( Columbimorphae) that include Columbiformes and Pterocliformes. They are smallish flightless or near flightless birds endemic to Madagascar. They are the only family w ...

), button-quails (

Turnicidae Buttonquail or hemipodes are members of a small family of birds, Turnicidae, which resemble, but are unrelated to, the quails of Phasianidae. They inhabit warm grasslands in Asia, Africa, Europe, and Australia. There are 18 species in two gener ...

), Australian plains-wanderer (

Pedionomidae The plains-wanderer (''Pedionomus torquatus'') is a bird, the only representative of family Pedionomidae and genus ''Pedionomus''. It is endemic to Australia. The majority of the remaining population is found in the Riverina region of New So ...

), seriemas ( Cariamidae), and bustards (

Otididae Bustards, including floricans and korhaans, are large, terrestrial birds living mainly in dry grassland areas and on the steppes of the Old World. They range in length from . They make up the family Otididae (, formerly known as Otidae). Bustard ...

) each represent distinct and unrelated lineages. Many families known only from fossils have been assigned to the Gruiformes, e.g., Ergilornithidae, Phorusrhacidae, Messelornithidae, Eogruidae, Idiornithidae, Bathornithidae, to name just a few (see below). Though some of these are superficially 'crane-like' and the possibility that some may even be related to extant families traditionally included in the Gruiformes, there are no completely extinct families that can be confidently assigned to core-Gruiformes. The traditional order Gruiformes was established by the influential German avian comparative anatomist Max Fürbringer (1888). Over the decades, many ornithologists suggested that members of the order were in fact more closely related to other groups (reviewed by Olson 1985, Sibley and Ahlquist 1990). For example, it was thought that sunbittern might be related to herons and that seriemas might be related to cuckoos. Olson and Steadman (1981) were first to correctly disband any of the traditional Gruiformes. They recognized that the Australian plains-wanderer (family Pedionomidae) was actually a member of the shorebirds (order Charadriiformes) based on skeletal characters. This was confirmed by Sibley and Ahlquist (1990) based on

DNA–DNA hybridization In genomics, DNA–DNA hybridization is a molecular biology technique that measures the degree of genetic similarity between pools of DNA sequences. It is usually used to determine the genetic distance between two organisms and has been used ext ...

and subsequently by Paton et al. (2003), Paton and Baker (2006) and Fain and Houde (2004, 2006). Sibley and Ahlquist furthermore removed button-quails (Turnicidae) from the Gruiformes based on large DNA–DNA hybridization distances to other supposed Gruiformes. However, it was not until the work of Paton et al. (2004) and Fain and Houde (2004, 2006) that the correct placement of buttonquails within the shorebirds (order Charadriiformes) was documented on the basis of phylogenetic analysis of multiple genetic loci. Using 12S ribosomal DNA sequences, Houde et al. (1997) were the first to present molecular genetic evidence of gruiform polyphyly, although apparently they were not convinced by it. However, on the basis of numerous additional sequence data, it has been shown decisively that the traditionally recognized Gruiformes consist of five to seven unrelated clades (Fain and Houde 2004, Ericson et al. 2006, Hackett et al. 2008). Fain and Houde (2004) proposed that Neoaves are divisible into two clades, Metaves and Coronaves, although it has been suggested from the start that Metaves may be paraphyletic (Fain and Houde 2004, Ericson ''et al.'' 2006, Hackett ''et al.'' 2008). Sunbittern, kagu, and mesites all group within Metaves but all the other lineages of "Gruiformes" group either with a collection of waterbirds or landbirds within Coronaves. This division has been upheld by the combined analysis of as many as 30 independent loci (Ericson ''et al.'' 2006, Hackett ''et al.'' 2008), but is dependent on the inclusion of one or two specific loci in the analyses. One locus, i.e., mitochondrial DNA, contradicts the strict monophyly of Coronaves (Morgan-Richards ''et al.'' 2008), but phylogeny reconstruction based on mitochondrial DNA is complicated by the fact that few families have been studied, the sequences are heavily saturated (with back mutations) at deep levels of divergence, and they are plagued by strong base composition bias. The

and

are one another's closest relatives. It had been proposed (Cracraft 2001) that they and the recently extinct adzebills (family Aptornithidae) from New Zealand constitute a distinct

Gondwana Gondwana () was a large landmass, often referred to as a supercontinent, that formed during the late Neoproterozoic (about 550 million years ago) and began to break up during the Jurassic period (about 180 million years ago). The final st ...

n lineage. However, sunbittern and kagu are believed to have diverged from one another long after the break-up of

Gondwanaland Gondwana () was a large landmass, often referred to as a supercontinent, that formed during the late Neoproterozoic (about 550 million years ago) and began to break up during the Jurassic period (about 180 million years ago). The final stages ...

and the adzebills are in fact members of the Grues (Houde ''et al.'' 1997, Houde 2009). The

seriema The seriemas are the sole living members of the small bird family Cariamidae, which is also the only surviving lineage of the order Cariamiformes. Once believed to be related to cranes, they have been placed near the falcons, parrots and passerin ...

s and

bustard Bustards, including floricans and korhaans, are large, terrestrial birds living mainly in dry grassland areas and on the steppes of the Old World. They range in length from . They make up the family Otididae (, formerly known as Otidae). Bust ...

s represent distinct lineages within neoavian waterbirds.

Phylogeny

ORDER GRUIFORMESMikko's Phylogeny Archiv

Paleofile.com (net, info) . * Family †

Songziidae ''Songzia'' is an extinct genus of gruiform bird related to rails. It lived in the Eocene epoch. Though many families traditionally assigned to the Gruiformes do not seem to actually belong there, this is apparently not the case with this an ...

Hou, 1990 ** Genus †'' Songzia'' Hou, 1990 *Suborder Grui ** Superfamily Gruoidea Vigors, 1825 *** Family †

Geranoididae Geranoididae is a clade of extinct birds from the early to late Eocene and possibly early Oligocene of North America and Europe. These were mid-sized, long-legged flightless birds.Gerald Mayr (2009). Paleogene Fossil Birds Recent research show ...

Wetmore, 1933 *** Family † Parvigruidae Mayr, 2005 **** Genus †'' Parvigrus'' Mayr, 2005 **** Genus †'' Rupelrallus'' Fischer, 1997 *** Family

Bonaparte, 1854 (limpkin) **** Genus †''

Badistornis ''Badistornis'' is a bird genus of the family Aramidae. ''Badistornis aramus'' is the only member of this genus. It is similar to the living species limpkin (''Aramus guarauna'') but larger. It was collected in Metamynodon zone river channel sand ...

'' Wetmore, 1940 **** Genus '' Aramus'' Vieillot, 1816 'Courlili'' Buffon, 1781; ''Notherodius">Courlili.html" ;"title="'Courlili">'Courlili'' Buffon, 1781; ''Notherodius'' Wagler, 1827] (limpkins) *** Family

Bonaparte, 1831 (trumpeters) **** Genus '' Psophia'' Linnaeus, 1758 *** Family †

Eogruidae Eogruidae (also spelled Eogruiidae in some publications) is a family of large, flightless birds that inhabited Asia from the Eocene to Pliocene epochs. Related to modern ostriches, it was formerly thought to be related to cranes, limpkins and tru ...

Wetmore, 1934 **** Genus †'' Sonogrus'' Kuročkin, 1981 **** Genus †'' Eogrus'' Wetmore, 1932 'Progrus'' Bendukidze, 1971">Progrus.html" ;"title="'Progrus">'Progrus'' Bendukidze, 1971**** Subfamily †Ergilornithinae ***** Genus †''Ergilornis'' Kozlova, 1960 ***** Genus †''Amphipelargus'' Lydekker, 1891 ***** Genus †''Urmiornis'' Mecquenem, 1908 *** Family Gruidae (cranes) **** Genus †'' Camusia'' Seguí, 2002 **** Subfamily

Balearicinae The bird genus ''Balearica'' (also called the crowned cranes) contains two extant species in the crane family Gruidae: the black crowned crane (''B. pavonina'') and the grey crowned crane (''B. regulorum''). The species today occur only in ...

Brasil, 1913 ***** Genus †'' Aramornis'' Wetmore, 1926 ***** Genus †'' Geranopsis'' Lydekker, 1871 ***** Genus †'' Eobalearica'' Gureev, 1949 ***** Genus '' Balearica'' Brisson, 1760 'Geranarchus'' Gloger, 1842(crowned cranes) **** Subfamily Gruinae Vigors, 1825 ***** Genus †'' "Grus" conferta'' Miller & Sibley, 1942 lson & Rasmussen, 2001/small> ***** Genus †'' "Probalearica" mongolica'' Kurochkin, 1985 ***** Genus †'' Palaeogrus'' Portis, 1885 'Palaeogrus'' Salvadori, 1884 ''nomen nudum''***** Genus ''

Antigone In Greek mythology, Antigone ( ; Ancient Greek: Ἀντιγόνη) is the daughter of Oedipus and either his mother Jocasta or, in another variation of the myth, Euryganeia. She is a sister of Polynices, Eteocles, and Ismene.Roman, L., & Roma ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1758) ***** Genus '' Leucogeranus'' (Pallas, 1773) ***** Genus '' Grus'' Brisson, 1760 non Moehring, 1758 [''Anthropoides'' Vieillot, 1816; ''Bugeranus'' Gloger, 1841; ''Megalornis'' Gray, 1841; ''Leucogeranus'' Bonaparte, 1855; ''Mathewsena'' Iredale, 1914; ''Mathewsia'' Iredale, 1911; ''Limnogeranus'' Sharpe, 1893; ''Laomedontia'' Reichenbach, 1852; ''Philorchemon'' Gloger, 1842; ''Scops'' Gray, 1840 non Moehring, 1758 non Bruennich, 1772 npn Savigny, 1809] (cranes) *Suborder Ralli (suborder), Ralli ** Family †Adzebill, Aptornithidae (adzebills) ** Family

(flufftails) *** Genus ''

Mentocrex ''Mentocrex'' is a genus of birds in the flufftail family, Sarothruridae. The genus includes two species, both of which are endemic to forests in Madagascar. Species The genus contains two species. * Madagascar wood rail (''Mentocrex kioloide ...

'' Peters, 1933 (wood rails) *** Genus ''

Sarothrura Flufftails (genus ''Sarothrura'') are small birds related to rails and finfoots. There are nine species, seven of which are distributed across sub-Saharan Africa, with the remaining two in Madagascar. The genus was long placed with the rail fam ...

'' Heine, 1890 non Hasselt, 1823 'Corethrura'' Reichenbach, 1849 non Hope, 1843 non Gray, 1846; ''Daseioura'' Penhallurick, 2003(flufftails) ** Family

Gray, 1841 (finfoots and sungrebe) *** Genus '' Heliopais'' Sharpe, 1893 (Asian/masked finfoots) *** Genus '' Podica'' Lesson, 1831 'Rhigelura'' Wagler, 1832; ''Podoa'' Bonaparte, 1857 non Illiger, 1811(African finfoots) *** Genus ''

Heliornis The sungrebe (''Heliornis fulica'') is a small aquatic gruiform found in the tropical and subtropical Americas from northeastern Mexico to central Ecuador and southern Brazil.Luo, Miles. K. (2009, October 16). ''Heliornis fulica'' (T. S. Schule ...

'' Bonnaterre, 1791 'Podoa'' Illiger, 1811 non Bonaparte, 1857; ''Plotoides'' Brookes, 1830; ''Podia'' Swainson, 1837(sungrebe, American finfoot) ** Family

(crakes, moorhens, gallinules, and rails) *** Genus †'' Aletornis'' Marsh, 1872 'Protogrus''*** Genus †''

Australlus ''Australlus'' is an extinct genus of birds in the rail family. It was described from a series of Late Oligocene to Middle Miocene fossil material found at Riversleigh in north-western Queensland, Australia. The genus was erected following re ...

'' Worthy & Boles, 2011 *** Genus †'' Baselrallus'' De Pietri & Mayr, 2014 *** Genus †''

Belgirallus ''Belgirallus'' is a genus of prehistoric rail that existed in Belgium during the Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As w ...

'' Mayr & Smith, 2001 *** Genus †'' Capellirallus'' Falla, 1954 (snipe-billed rail) *** Genus †'' Creccoides'' Shufeldt, 1892 *** Genus †'' Eocrex'' Wetmore, 1931 *** Genus †'' Euryonotus'' Mercerat, 1897 *** Genus †'' Fulicaletornis'' Lambrecht, 1933 *** Genus †'' Hovacrex'' Brodkorb, 1965 (Hova gallinule) *** Genus †'' Ibidopsis'' Lydekker, 1891 *** Genus †'' Latipons'' Harrison & Walker, 1979 *** Genus †'' Miofulica'' Lambrecht, 1933 *** Genus †'' Miorallus'' Lambrecht, 1933 *** Genus †'' Nesophalaris'' Brodkorb & Dawson, 1962 *** Genus †'' Palaeoaramides'' Lambrecht, 1933 *** Genus †'' Palaeorallus'' Wetmore, 1931 *** Genus †'' Paraortygometra'' Lambrecht, 1933 *** Genus †'' Parvirallus'' Harrison & Walker, 1979 *** Genus †'' Pastushkinia'' Zelenkov, 2013 *** Genus †'' Quercyrallus'' Lambrecht, 1933 *** Genus †'' Rallicrex'' Lambrecht, 1933 *** Genus †'' Rhenanorallus'' Mayr, 2010 *** Genus †''

Vitirallus ''Vitirallus watlingi'', the Fiji rail or Viti Levu rail, was a prehistoric flightless bird from Fiji, and is the only species in the genus ''Vitirallus''. ''Vitirallus watlingi'' is thought to have been about the same size as the bar-winged rai ...

'' Worthy, 2004 (Viti Levu rails) *** Genus †'' Wanshuina'' Hou, 1994 *** Genus †'' Youngornis'' Yeh, 1981 *** Genus †Rallidae gen. et sp. indet. 'Fulica podagrica'' (partim)">Fulica_podagrica.html" ;"title="'Fulica podagrica">'Fulica podagrica'' (partim)(Barbados rail) *** Genus †Rallidae gen. et sp. indet. (Easter Island rail) *** Genus †Rallidae gen. et sp. indet. (Fernando de Noronha rail) *** Genus †Rallidae gen. et sp. indet. (Tahitian "goose”) *** Genus †Rallidae gen. et sp. indet. (Bokaak "bustard") *** Genus †Rallidae gen. et sp. indet. ('Amsterdam Island' rail) *** Genus '' Rougetius'' Bonaparte, 1856 (Rouget's Rails) *** Subfamily Rallinae Rafinesque, 1815 **** Genus †'' Pleistorallus'' Worthy, 1997 (Fleming's rails) **** Genus '' Anurolimnas'' Sharpe, 1893 (Chestnut-headed Crakes) **** Genus '' Biensis'' (Madagascan Rails) **** Genus '' Rallicula'' Schlegel, 1871 'Corethruropsis'' Salvadori, 1876(forest-rails) **** Genus ''

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 ...

'' Linnaeus, 1758 ��'' Epirallus">��''Epirallus'' Miller, 1942**** Genus †''Aphanapteryx">Epirallus'' Miller, 1942">Epirallus">��''Epirallus'' Miller, 1942**** Genus †''Aphanapteryx'' von Frauenfeld, 1868 [''Pezocrex'' Hachisuka, 1953] (Mauritius/Red rails) **** Genus †''Erythromachus'' Milne-Edwards, 1873 (Rodriquez rails) **** Genus ''Dryolimnas'' Sharpe, 1893 **** Genus ''Crex'' Bechstein, 1803 'Crecopsis'' Sharpe, 1893">Crecopsis.html" ;"title="'Crecopsis">'Crecopsis'' Sharpe, 1893(greater crakes) **** Genus ''Lewinia'' Gray, 1855 [''Aramidopsis'' Sharpe, 1893; ''Donacias'' Heine & Reichenow, 1890; ''Hyporallus'' Iredale & Mathews, 1926] **** Genus ''Canirallus'' Bonaparte, 1856 (grey-throated rail) **** Genus ''

Gymnocrex ''Gymnocrex'' is a genus of bird in the rail family, Rallidae. It contains the following species: * Bare-eyed rail, ''Gymnocrex plumbeiventris'' * Blue-faced rail or bald-faced rail, ''Gymnocrex rosenbergii'' * Talaud rail The Talaud rail ...

'' Salvadori, 1875 (bare-faced rails) **** Genus ''

Gallirallus ''Gallirallus'' is a genus of rails that live in the Australasian-Pacific region. The genus is characterised by an ability to colonise relatively small and isolated islands and thereafter to evolve flightless forms, many of which became extinc ...

'' Lafresnaye, 1841 'Tricholimnas'' Sharpe, 1893; ''Nesoclopeus">Tricholimnas.html" ;"title="'Tricholimnas">'Tricholimnas'' Sharpe, 1893; ''Nesoclopeus'' Peters, 1932; ''Cabalus'' Hutton, 1874; ''Habropteryx'' Stresemann, 1932; ''Eulabeornis'' Gould, 1844; †''Diaphorapteryx'' Forbes, 1893; ''Hypotaenidia'' Reichenbach, 1853; '' Sylvestrornis'' Mathews, 1928] *** Subfamily Gallinulinae Gray, 1840 **** Tribe Pardirallini Livezey, 1998 ramidinae(Wood-rails & allies) ***** Genus '' Pardirallus'' Bonaparte, 1856 'Ortygonax'' Heine, 1890***** Genus '' Mustelirallus'' Bonaparte, 1858 'Neocrex'' Sclater & Salvin, 1869; ''Cyanolimnas'' Barbour & Peters, 1927***** Genus ''

Amaurolimnas The uniform crake (''Amaurolimnas concolor'') is a species of bird in the subfamily Rallinae of the rail, crake, and coot family Rallidae.HBW and BirdLife International (2021) Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digita ...

'' Sharpe 1893 (Rufous rails; Uniform crakes) ***** Genus '' Aramides'' Pucheran, 1845 **** Tribe Gallinulini Gray, 1840 ulicarinae (Nitzsch, 1820) sensu Livezey, 1998***** Genus ''

Tribonyx ''Tribonyx'' is a small genus of birds in the rail family, containing two extant species and one recently extinct species. The genus is endemic to Australia and New Zealand. They are sometimes lumped with the moorhen Moorhens—sometim ...

'' Du Bus de Gisignies, 1840 'Brachyptrallus'' Lafresnaye, 1840; ''Microtribonyx'' Sharpe, 1893(native-hens) ***** Genus ''

Porzana ''Porzana'' is a genus of birds in the crake and rail family, Rallidae. Its scientific name is derived from Venetian terms for small rails. The spotted crake (''P. porzana'') is the type species. Taxonomy The genus ''Porzana'' was erected by t ...

'' Vieillot, 1816 'Limnobaenus'' Sundevall, 1872; ''Phalaridion'' Kaup, 1829; ''Porzanoidea'' Mathews, 1912; ''Porzanoides'' Condon, 1975; ''Rallites'' Pucheran, 1845; ''Schoenocrex'' Roberts, 1922; ''Porphyriops'' Pucheran, 1845] ***** Genus ''Paragallinula'' Sangster, García-R & Trewick, 2015 (Lesser Moorhen) ***** Genus ''Gallinula'' Brisson, 1760 [''Hydrogallina'' Lacépède, 1799; ''Stagnicola'' Brehm, 1831; ''Porphyriornis'' Allen, 1892 ''Pareudiastes'' Hartlaub & Finsch, 1871 ''Edithornis''] ***** Genus '' coots, Fulica'' Linnaeus, 1758 ��''Palaeolimnas'' Forbes, 1893*** Subfamily Porphyrioninae Reichenbach, 1849 **** Tribe Porphyrionini Reichenbach, 1849 (Purple gallinules & swamphens) ***** Genus †'' Aphanocrex'' Wetmore, 1963 (St. Helena swamphens) ***** Genus ''

Porphyrio ''Porphyrio'' is the swamphen or swamp hen bird genus in the rail family. It includes some smaller species which are usually called "purple gallinules", and which are sometimes separated as genus ''Porphyrula'' or united with the gallinules pro ...

'' Brisson, 1760 'Notornis'' Owen, 1848**** Tribe Himantornithini Bonaparte, 1856 (Bush-hens & Waterhens) ***** Genus '' Himantornis'' Hartlaub, 1855 (Nkulenga rails) ***** Genus '' Megacrex'' D'Albertis & Salvadori, 1879 (New Guinea Flightless Rails) ***** Genus '' Aenigmatolimnas'' (Striped Crakes) ***** Genus '' Gallicrex'' Blyth, 1852 'Gallinulopha'' Bonaparte, 1854; ''Hypnodes'' Reichenbach, 1853(Watercocks) ***** Genus ''

Amaurornis ''Amaurornis'' is a genus of birds in the rail family Rallidae. The species in this genus are typically called bush-hens. A monotypic subtribe, Amaurornithina, was proposed for this genus. Taxonomy The genus ''Amaurornis'' was erected by the Ger ...

'' Reichenbach, 1853 'Erythra'' Reichenbach, 1853; ''Pisynolimnas'' Heine & Reichenow, 1890; ''Poliolimnas'' Sharpe, 1893">Poliolimnas">'Erythra'' Reichenbach, 1853; ''Pisynolimnas'' Heine & Reichenow, 1890; ''Poliolimnas'' Sharpe, 1893(Bush-hen) **** Tribe Zaporniini Des Murs, 1860 (Old world crakes) ***** Genus ''Rallina'' Gray, 1846 [''Euryzona'' Gray, 1855; ''Tomirdus'' Mathews, 1912] (chestnut-rails) ***** Genus ''

Zapornia ''Zapornia'' is a genus of birds in the rail family Rallidae. Taxonomy The genus ''Zapornia'' was introduced in 1816 by the English zoologist William Elford Leach in a catalogue of animals in the British Museum. He included a single species, the ...

'' Stephens, 1824 'Limnocorax'' Peters, 1854; ''Limnobaenus''; ''Corethrura'' Grey, 1846**** Tribe Laterallini Tif, 2014 (New world crakes) ***** Genus '' Micropygia'' Bonaparte, 1856 (Ocellated Crakes) ***** Genus '' Rufirallus'' (russet-crowned crake) ***** Genus ''

Laterallus ''Laterallus'' is a genus of birds in the rail family Rallidae. These small, relatively short-billed terrestrial rails are found among dense vegetation near water in the Neotropics, although a single species, the black rail, also occurs in the ...

'' Gray, 1855 (ruddy crakes) ***** Genus '' Coturnicops'' Gray, 1855 (barred-backed crakes) ***** Genus ''

Hapalocrex The yellow-breasted crake (''Laterallus flaviventer'') is a species of bird in subfamily Rallinae of family Rallidae, the rails, gallinules, and coots. It is found on several Caribbean islands and in most of Central America and South America. ...

'' (Yellow-breasted Crakes) ***** Genus '' Limnocrex'' ***** Genus ''

Mundia Mundia is a town and a nagar panchayat in Badaun district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Demographics India census, Mundia had a population of 6,242. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Mundia has an average literacy ...

'' Bourne, Ashmole & Simmons, 2003 (Ascension Island Crakes) ***** Genus '' Creciscus'' Cabanis, 1857 'Atlantisia'' Lowe, 1923(blackish crakes) **Not placed in family ***Genus †''

Nesotrochis ''Nesotrochis'' is a genus of extinct flightless birds, formerly native to the islands of the Greater Antilles in the Caribbean. Its species are considered examples of insular gigantism. It contains 3 species known from subfossil remains of La ...

'' Wetmore, 1918 (West Indian cave-rails) When considered to be monophyletic, it was assumed that Gruiformes was among the more ancient of avian lineages. The divergence of "gruiforms" among "Metaves" and "Coronaves" is proposed to be the first divergence among Neoaves, far predating the

Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event The Cretaceous–Paleogene (K–Pg) extinction event (also known as the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinction) was a sudden extinction event, mass extinction of three-quarters of the plant and animal species on Earth, approximately 66 million y ...

c. 66 mya (Houde 2009). No unequivocal

basal Basal or basilar is a term meaning ''base'', ''bottom'', or ''minimum''. Science * Basal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location for features associated with the base of an organism or structure * Basal (medicine), a minimal level that is nec ...

gruiforms are known from the fossil record. However, there are several

genera 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 ...

that are not unequivocally assignable to the known families and that may occupy a more basal position: * '' Propelargus'' (Late Eocene/Early Oligocene of Quercy, France) – cariamid or idornithid * '' Rupelrallus'' (Early Oligocene of Germany) – rallid? parvigruid? * ''

'' (Brule Middle Oligocene of Shannon County, Missouri) – aramid? * '' Probalearica'' (Late Oligocene? – Middle Pliocene of Florida, France?, Moldavia and Mongolia) – gruid? A ''

nomen dubium In binomial nomenclature, a ''nomen dubium'' (Latin for "doubtful name", plural ''nomina dubia'') is a scientific name that is of unknown or doubtful application. Zoology In case of a ''nomen dubium'' it may be impossible to determine whether a s ...

''? * "Gruiformes" gen. et sp. indet. MNZ S42623 (Bathans Early/Middle Miocene of Otago, New Zealand) – Aptornithidae? * '' Aramornis'' (Sheep Creek Middle Miocene of Snake Creek Quarries, U.S.) – gruid? aramid? * '' Euryonotus'' (Pleistocene of Argentina) – rallid? Other even more enigmatic fossil birds and five living families are occasionally suggested to belong into this order, such as the proposed

Late Cretaceous The Late Cretaceous (100.5–66 Ma) is the younger of two epochs into which the Cretaceous Period is divided in the geologic time scale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous Series. The Cretaceous is named after ''creta'', ...

family Laornithidae and the following taxa: * Family †

Gastornithidae ''Gastornis'' is an extinct genus of large flightless birds that lived during the mid Paleocene to mid Eocene epochs of the Paleogene period. Fossils have been found in Europe, Asia and North America, with the remains from North America origina ...

(diatrymas) (

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

) * Family †

Messelornithidae Messelornithidae is an extinct clade of gruiform birds, closely related to modern rails. The fossil record are from the Paleocene to the early Oligocene of Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its ...

(

Messel Messel is a municipality in the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg in Hesse near Frankfurt am Main in Germany. The village is first mentioned, as ''Masilla'', in the Lorsch codex. Messel was the property of the lords of Groschlag from ca. 1400 to 1799 ...

-birds) * Family † Salmilidae (

) – distinct order (

Cariamiformes Cariamiformes (or Cariamae) is an order of primarily flightless birds that has existed for over 60 million years. The group includes the family Cariamidae (seriemas) and the extinct families Phorusrhacidae, Bathornithidae, Idiornithidae and ...

) * Family †

(

) – distinct order (

); however, Mayr (2016) argued they might be members of Gruiformes, specifically

stem group In phylogenetics, the crown group or crown assemblage is a collection of species composed of the living representatives of the collection, the most recent common ancestor of the collection, and all descendants of the most recent common ancestor ...

representatives of the Gruoidea. * Family †

Bathornithidae Bathornithidae is an extinct family of birds from the Eocene to Miocene of North America. Part of Cariamiformes, they are related to the still extant seriemas and the also extinct Phorusrhacidae. They were likely similar in habits, being terre ...

(

) – distinct order (

) * Family †

Idiornithidae Idiornithidae is an extinct family of Cariamiformes. Fossils of these birds were found mainly in the phosphorus layers of Quercy in south-western France. Other specimens have been found throughout Germany as well. Description The Idiornithidae ...

(

) – distinct order (

) * Family †

Phorusrhacidae Phorusrhacids, colloquially known as terror birds, are an extinct clade of large carnivorous flightless birds that were one of the largest species of apex predators in South America during the Cenozoic era; their conventionally accepted temporal ...

(terror birds) (

) – distinct order (

) * Family Cariamidae (seriemas) – Neoavian landbirds – distinct order (

) * Family

(bustards) – Neoavian waterbirds – distinct order * Family Eurypygidae (sunbittern) – prospective "Metaves" – new order

Eurypygiformes Eurypygiformes is an order formed by the kagus, comprising two species in the family Rhynochetidae endemic to New Caledonia, and the sunbittern (''Eurypyga helias'') from the tropical regions of the Americas. Its closest relatives appear to ...

together with kagu

Frank Gill Frank Gill may refer to: * Frank Gill (Australian footballer) (1908–1970), Australian rules footballer with Carlton * Frank Gill (footballer, born 1948), footballer for Tranmere Rovers *Frank Gill (politician) (1917–1982), New Zealand politicia ...

and Minturn Wright: ''Birds of the World Recommended English Names''. Princeton University Press, 2006, * Family

Rhynochetidae ''Rhynochetos'' is a genus of ground-dwelling birds in the monotypic family Rhynochetidae. It contains two species, both endemic to New Caledonia, one of which is extinct. Taxonomy ''Rhynochetos jubatus'' is the only extant species of this ge ...

(kagu) – prospective "Metaves" – new order Eurypygiformes together with sunbittern * Family

(mesites, roatelos, monias) prospective "Metaves" – distinct order *Family

(buttonquails) moved to already existing order

Charadriiformes Charadriiformes (, from '' Charadrius'', the type genus of family Charadriidae) is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 390 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most charadriiform birds live near water ...

together with plains wanderer *Family

(plains wanderer) moved to already existing order Charadriiformes together with buttonquails * '' Horezmavis'' (Bissekty Late Cretaceous of Kyzyl Kum, Uzbekistan) * ''

Telmatornis ''Telmatornis'' is a valid prehistoric bird genus of unclear affiliations. It apparently lived in the Late Cretaceous; its remains were found in the early Maastrichtian (c.71-68 million years ago) Navesink Formation of New Jersey. A single ...

'' (Navesink Late Cretaceous?) * '' Amitabha'' (Bridger middle Eocene of Forbidden City, Wyoming) – rallid? * '' Eobalearica'' (Ferghana Late? Eocene of Ferghana, Uzbekistan) – gruid? * ''"Phasianus" alfhildae'' (Washakie B Late Eocene of Haystack Butte, U.S.) * '' Talantatos'' (Late Eocene of Paris Bain, France) * ''

Telecrex ''Telecrex'' is an extinct genus of birds related to guineafowl, containing two species, ''Telecrex grangeri'' (the type species) and ''Telecrex peregrinus''. ''T. grangeri'' is known from a single partial femur from Eocene deposits in Inner Mong ...

'' (Irdin Manha Late Eocene of Chimney Butte, China) – rallid? * Neornithes incerta sedis (Late Paleocene/Early Eocene of Ouled Abdoun Basin, Morocco) * '' Aminornis'' (Deseado Early Oligocene of Rio Deseado, Argentina) – aramid? * '' Loncornis'' (Deseado Early Oligocene of Rio Deseado, Argentina) – aramid? * '' Riacama'' (Deseado Early Oligocene of Argentina) * '' Smiliornis'' (Deseado Early Oligocene of Argentina) * '' Pseudolarus'' (Deseado Early Oligocene – Miocene of Argentina) – gruiform? * '' Gnotornis'' (Brule Late Oligocene of Shannon County, Missouri) – aramid? * '' Anisolornis'' (Santa Cruz Middle Miocene of Karaihen, Argentina) – aramid? * '' Occitaniavis'' – cariamid or idiornithid, includes ''Geranopsis elatus''

References

* * * * * *Houde, P. (2009) "Gruiformes". in ''Timetree of Life'' (S. B. Hedges and S. Kumar, eds.) Oxford Univ. Press, New York. * * *Olson, S. L. (1985) "The fossil record of birds". ''Avian biology'' (D. S. Farner and King, J. R. and K. C. Parkes, eds.) 8: 79–238, Academic Press, Orlando. * * * Sibley, Charles Gald and Ahlquist, Jon Edward (1990): ''Phylogeny and classification of birds''. Yale University Press, New Haven, Conn.

External links

Tree of Life: Gruiformes
{{Authority control Bird orders Extant Maastrichtian first appearances Late Cretaceous taxonomic orders Paleocene taxonomic orders Eocene taxonomic orders Oligocene taxonomic orders Miocene taxonomic orders Pliocene taxonomic orders Pleistocene taxonomic orders Holocene taxonomic orders Taxa named by Charles Lucien Bonaparte

Systematics

Phylogeny

See also

References

External links