• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Distribution map
• Reference and further resources

Taxonomic note
Mentocrex kioloides (del Hoyo and Collar 2014) was previously placed in the genus Canirallus.

Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.

Red List criteria met

Critically Endangered	Endangered	Vulnerable
-	-	-

Red List history

Year	Category	Criteria
2022	Least Concern
2016	Least Concern
2012	Least Concern
2009	Least Concern
2008	Least Concern
2004	Least Concern
2000	Lower Risk/Least Concern
1994	Lower Risk/Least Concern
1988	Lower Risk/Least Concern

Migratory status	not a migrant	Forest dependency	high
Land-mass type		Average mass	-

	Estimate	Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident)	209,000 km2	medium
Severely fragmented?	no	-

	Estimate	Data quality	Derivation	Year of estimate
Population size	unknown	poor	-	-
Population trend	decreasing	-	suspected	2016-2031
Rate of change over the past 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	10-19%	-	-	-
Rate of change over the future 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	10-19%	-	-	-
Rate of change over the past & future 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	10-19%	-	-	-
Generation length	5.06 years	-	-	-
Number of subpopulations	2-100	-	-	-
Percentage of mature individuals in largest subpopulation	1-89%	-	-	-

Population justification: The population size was previously suspected to number 1,000-2,000 individuals, however it is now considered unlikely to be that small given the range and spread of recent records. With little quantitative data available the current population size is considered unknown. 

The subspecies M. k. kioloides was regarded as common around 1930, but has since faced continued habitat destruction (Taylor 2021). M. k. berliozi is restricted to small areas of threatened forest, but is thought to be fairly common within these (Taylor 2021).

Trend justification: Both subspecies are experiencing ongoing habitat destruction and the overall population is suspected to be in decline as a result (de Hoyo et al. 1996). Over three generations (15.18 years), an estimated 16% of tree cover has been lost (Global Forest Watch 2021, using Hansen et al. [2013] data and methods disclosed therein), and in view of ongoing threats these declines are likely to continue. As this species is highly forest dependent, it is assumed that population declines may be roughly equivalent to this rate of habitat loss.

Country/Territory	Presence	Origin	Resident	Breeding visitor	Non-breeding visitor	Passage migrant
Madagascar	extant	native	yes

Country/Territory	IBA Name
Madagascar	Andohahela National Park - Section I
Madagascar	Andringitra National Park
Madagascar	Anjanaharibe Classified Forest
Madagascar	Anjozorobe Forest
Madagascar	Ankeniheny Classified Forest
Madagascar	Betampona Strict Nature Reserve
Madagascar	Bezavona Classified Forest
Madagascar	Mananara-North Biosphere Reserve
Madagascar	Mangerivola Special Reserve
Madagascar	Mantadia National Park and Analamazaotra Special Reserve
Madagascar	Marojejy National Park
Madagascar	Marotandrano Special Reserve
Madagascar	Masoala National Park
Madagascar	Midongy South National Park
Madagascar	Montagne d'Ambre National Park and Special Reserve
Madagascar	Onive Classified Forest
Madagascar	Ranomafana National Park and extension
Madagascar	Sihanaka Forest
Madagascar	South Anjanaharibe Special Reserve and extension
Madagascar	Tsitongambarika NPA
Madagascar	Upper Rantabe Classified Forest
Madagascar	Vondrozo Classified Forest NPA
Madagascar	Zahamena National Park and Strict Reserve

Habitat (level 1)	Habitat (level 2)	Importance	Occurrence
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Dry	suitable	resident
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Moist Lowland	major	resident
Wetlands (inland)	Permanent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha)	suitable	resident
Wetlands (inland)	Permanent Rivers/Streams/Creeks (includes waterfalls)	suitable	resident
Altitude	0 - 2000 m	Occasional altitudinal limits

Threat (level 1)	Threat (level 2)	Impact and Stresses
Agriculture & aquaculture	Annual & perennial non-timber crops - Shifting agriculture	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Majority (50-90%)		Negligible declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Species disturbance, Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Biological resource use	Logging & wood harvesting - Unintentional effects: (subsistence/small scale) [harvest]	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Majority (50-90%)		Negligible declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Madagascar Forest Rail Mentocrex kioloides. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/madagascar-forest-rail-mentocrex-kioloides on 23/11/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 23/11/2024.