Description
The Rodrigues Rail was a plump, flightless rail with bright grey plumage, perhaps flecked with white, and it had a red bill and legs, and a red, naked area around its eyes. It was somewhat smaller than its closest relative, the Red Rail. The bird's exact length is unknown, but it was about the size of a chicken. The strong bill varied greatly in size and shape; some specimens had short and almost straight bills, and others had much longer bills that were prominently curved. It is unknown whether this wa related to sexual dimorphism or to individual variation. Its cranium was 38 millimetres (1.5 in) long by 20 millimetres (0.79 in) wide, and the bill was 77 millimetres (3.0 in) long. The pelvis was large and strongly built in proportion to the size of the bird.
The Rodrigues Rail had somewhat larger wings than the Red Rail, but the species' leg proportions, pelvis and sacrum was also similar. It also had a proportionately longer humerus, a broader and shorter skull, and having longer and lower nostrils from the Red Rail, from which it differed considerably in plumage, based on early descriptions.
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