Dieffenbach's rail
Dieffenbach's rail is an extinct flightless species of bird from the family Rallidae. It was endemic to the Chatham Islands and referred to as meriki, or mehoriki, by the indigenous Moriori. The only recorded living specimen of Dieffenbach's rail was captured in 1840 by Ernst Dieffenbach, who is commemorated in the scientific and common name of the species. It became extinct due to hunting and introduced predators, perhaps soon after 1840.
The Dieffenbach's rail was sympatric with the flightless Chatham rail. Their sympatry suggests parallel evolution after separate colonisation of the Chatham Islands by a common volant ancestor, presumably the buff-banded rail.
