1. This module covers the following orders: •EURYPYGIFORMES — Sunbitterns
•GRUIFORMES — Cranes, Rails, & Allies
the ones below you do not need to know for exams
• MESITORNITHIFORMES — Mesites
• OTIDIFORMES — Bustards

2. Sunbittern
Sunbittern, Costa Rica

3. ORDER EURYPYGIFORMES — Sunbittern & Kagu— 2 families; 2 spp
Range: Central and South American; New Caledonia
Morphology/ecology: sunbitterns live along tropical streams where they catch frogs, insects, etc
Behavior: Sunbitterns have startle display where they flash bright colors on wings (fake eyes?)
Taxonomic notes: this is a new order that was previously with Gruiformes
Important families:
Eurypygidae: sunbittern

6. CRANES RAILS AND ALLIES
Austral Rail
Argentina

7. *ORDER GRUIFORMES — Cranes & Rails — 6 families; 163 species
Range: worldwide
Morphology/ecology: terrestrial and aquatic birds (wading, a few swimmers)
Behavior: most are shy and retiring, mainly monogamous, but some are polyandrous, where females compete for males and have multiple males.
Other notes: flightlessness has arisen many independent times in rails
Taxonomic notes: this order was recently split into several orders (bustards, seriemas, mesites, sunbitterns all in own orders)
Important families:
*Rallidae: coots, rails
*Gruidae: cranes

8. Family Rallidae: rails, coots, moorhens
- Largely aquatic birds that are solitary and shy (except coots)
Well adapted for hiding in vegetation (‘thin as a rail’)
Long toes well adapted for walking on floating vegetation.
Pukeko
New Zealand

9. rail
sociallly monogamous

10. Sora, British Columbia
Virginia rail, British Columbia

11. American Coot, B.C.

12. Nest with eggs from two coot females—brood parasitism

13. coots also have interesting family dynamics: colorful chicks

14. and they beat the crap out of their kids

15. Family Gruidae: cranes
Large wading birds with long necks
Many have graceful courtship dances
Sensitive to habitat loss, and many are of conservation concern
Crowned Crane, Kenya

16. ORDER OTIDIFORMES — Bustards— 1 family; 26 species
for your enjoyment but you do not need to memorize this order
ORDER OTIDIFORMES — Bustards— 1 family; 26 species
Great Bustard

17. ORDER MESITORNITHIFORMES — Mesites — 1 family; 3 species
for your enjoyment but you do not need to memorize this order
ORDER MESITORNITHIFORMES — Mesites — 1 family; 3 species
Photo Simon Woolley & Julia Casson
Subdesert Mesite