White-winged Flufftail

Open encyclopedia reference

The white-winged flufftail (Sarothrura ayresi) is a very rare African bird in the family Sarothruridae. The estimated global population size of white-winged flufftails is less than 250 adults. These birds reside in Ethiopia and South Africa but it is unknown whether these populations are one large or two different populations.

Both sexes have dull plumage, dark crowns, and when flying show white secondary feathers.

Their habitat consists of high altitude seasonal marshland with high sedge cover to protect their ground nests. Habitat loss is the main problem facing these birds as they require highly specialized habitat. These marshlands are being destroyed for a number of reasons such as, farming, grazing and sedge harvesting, but some efforts are being taken to protect the white-winged flufftail.

Wikipedia contributors, White-winged flufftail; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:55:33.483250+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Sarothrura ayresi (J. H. Gurney Sr, 1877)

Name authority

(J. H. Gurney Sr, 1877)

Common name

White-winged Flufftail

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Aves

Order

Gruiformes

Family

Sarothruridae

Genus

Sarothrura

Extinction status

Recorded extant

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classAves
9. orderGruiformes
10. familySarothruridae
11. genusSarothrura Heine, 1890
12. speciesSarothrura ayresi (J. H. Gurney Sr, 1877)

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Sarothrura. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 9 records assigned to Sarothruridae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=176365 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:CPHSH. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.