| Mangrove rail | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Gruiformes |
| Family: | Rallidae |
| Genus: | Rallus |
| Species: | R. longirostris |
| Binomial name | |
| Rallus longirostris Boddaert, 1783 | |
 | |
The mangrove rail (Rallus longirostris) is a species of bird in subfamily Rallinae of family Rallidae, the rails, gallinules, and coots. It is found in Central and South America. [2] [3]
The mangrove rail was described by the French polymath Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon in 1781 in his Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux from a specimen obtained in French Guiana. [4] The bird was also illustrated in a hand-colored plate engraved by François-Nicolas Martinet in the Planches Enluminées D'Histoire Naturelle which was produced under the supervision of Edme-Louis Daubenton to accompany Buffon's text. [5] Neither the plate caption nor Buffon's description included a scientific name but in 1783 the Dutch naturalist Pieter Boddaert coined the binomial name Rallus longirostris in his catalogue of the Planches Enluminées. [6] The genus Rallus had been erected in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae . [7] The specific epithet longirostris combines the Latin longus meaning "long" and -rostris meaning "-billed". [8]
The mangrove rail was formerly considered to be conspecific with what are now the Aztec rail (R. tenuirostris), Ridgway's rail (R. obsoletus), the king rail (R. elegans), and the clapper rail (R. crepitans), and more recently as conspecific with Ridgeway's and king rails. Worldwide taxonomic systems now agree that each of the five is a separate species based on a 2013 study that described their different genetics and morphologies. [9] [2] [10] [3] Many systems treat it as most closely related to Ridgway's rail. [11]
Eight subspecies of mangrove rail are recognized: [2]
The mangrove rail is about 33 cm (13 in) long and weighs 260 to 310 g (9.2 to 11 oz). It has a long, slender, and slightly decurved bill with a brownish maxilla and an orange-yellow mandible. Its legs are light orange-red. The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies R. l. longirostris have dull gray-brown upperparts with darker centers to the feathers. They have a white loral streak on their pale gray face, a whitish throat, tawny buff neck and breast with a white center to the belly, and black and white bars on the flanks. Juveniles are similar to adults but are darker and duller. [13]
Subspecies R. l. phelpsi has a darker crown and upperparts and paler underparts than the nominate. R. l. margaritae is the darkest subspecies; it is smaller than the nominate and has bolder bars on the flanks. R. l. pelodramus is similar in size to margaritae but paler. The dark markings on the upperparts of R. l. cypereti are lighter than those of the nominate and the dark flank bars are also lighter. [13]
The mangrove rail is found discontinuously on the Pacific coast of Central America and the Pacific, Caribbean, and Atlantic coasts of South America. It inhabits coastal mangrove swamps and brackish and salt marshes. The subspecies are distributed thus: [10] [13]
The mangrove rail is sedentary. [13]
The mangrove rail forages near cover, mostly at low tide and during the morning and early evening. It is believed to hunt by sight, probing sand and mud, tossing aside leaf litter to expose prey, catching small fish in shallow water, and scavenging dead fish. It has a very diverse diet that includes animal prey such as crustaceans (especially crabs and crayfish), molluscs, leeches, aquatic and terrestrial insects, fish, and amphibians. It also feeds on plant matter such as seeds, berries, and tubers, especially in winter. [13]
The mangrove rail's breeding season varies geographically but in most areas includes May and June. It makes a nest of sticks and dead leaves near water on the ground or in vegetation. The clutch size is three to seven eggs. Both sexes incubate the eggs for the period of 18 to 29 days. [13]
The mangrove rail's main vocalization is a "[l]oud clattering 'kek-kek-kek…'" that accelerates and then slows; it makes this call mostly at dawn and dusk. Both sexes make "a series of loud, rapid 'kak' notes" as an "advertising call". Another call is a "drawn-out low 'raaaaa'." [13]
The IUCN has assessed the mangrove rail as being of Least Concern. It has a very large range but its population size is not known and is believed to be decreasing. No immediate threats have been identified. [1] A longer term threat is "the degradation and loss of mangroves and other wetland habitats." [13]
The common green magpie is a member of the crow family, roughly about the size of the Eurasian jay or slightly smaller. In the wild specimens are usually a bright green colour, slightly lighter on the underside and has a thick black stripe from the bill to the nape. Compared to the other members of its genus, the white-tipped tail is quite long. This all contrasts vividly with the red fleshy eye rims, bill and legs. The wings are reddish maroon.
The black-headed lapwing or black-headed plover is a large lapwing, a group of largish waders in the family Charadriidae. It is a resident breeder across sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal to Ethiopia, although it has seasonal movements. It lays two or three eggs on a ground scrape.
The southern white-fringed antwren is an insectivorous bird in the antbird family Thamnophilidae. It is a resident breeder in tropical South America from Colombia southeast to the Guianas and Brazil.
The great-billed parrot also known as Moluccan parrot or island parrot, is a medium-sized, approximately 38 cm long, green parrot with a massive red bill, cream iris, blackish shoulders, olive green back, pale blue rump and yellowish green underparts. The female is typically smaller than the male, but otherwise the sexes are similar.
The Karoo prinia or spotted prinia is a small passerine bird. It is a resident breeder in South Africa, Lesotho and far southern Namibia.
The Madagascar ibis, also known as the Madagascar crested ibis, white-winged ibis or crested wood ibis, is a medium-sized, brown-plumaged ibis. It has bare red orbital skin, yellow bill, red legs, white wings and its head is partially bare with a dense crest of green or gloss blue and white plumes on the nape. The Madagascar ibis is the only member of the genus Lophotibis.
The giant snipe is a stocky wader. It breeds in South America. The nominate subspecies G. u. undulata occurs in two distinct areas, one in Colombia, and the other from Venezuela through Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana to extreme north-eastern Brazil. The southern subspecies G. u. gigantea is found in eastern Bolivia, eastern Paraguay and south-east Brazil, and probably also in Uruguay and north-eastern Argentina.
The black nunbird is a species of near-passerine bird in the family Bucconidae, the puffbirds, nunlets, and nunbirds. It is found in Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela.
The Luzon hornbill, sometimes called Luzon tarictic hornbill, is a species of hornbill in the family Bucerotidae. It is endemic to forests on Luzon and nearby islands in the northern Philippines. As is the case with all Philippine tarictic hornbills, it has been considered a subspecies of P. panini.
The violet-necked lory is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is endemic to Indonesia, where it is found in the northern Maluku Islands and west Papuan islands. Its natural habitats are tropical moist lowland forests and tropical mangrove forests.
The spotted rail is a species of bird in the subfamily Rallinae of the rail, crake, and coot family Rallidae. It is found in Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and South America.
The yellow-breasted crake is a species of bird in subfamily Rallinae of family Rallidae, the rails, gallinules, and coots. It is found on several Caribbean islands and in most of Central America and South America.
The bar-bellied cuckooshrike is a species of bird in the family Campephagidae. It is found in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines, and its natural habitats include mangrove forest, dry forest, swamp forest, and secondary forest. The plumage varies among the subspecies, with different amounts of barring on the underparts. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has assessed the species as one of least-concern.
The variegated antpitta is a species of bird in the family Grallariidae. It is found in southeastern Brazil, eastern Paraguay, the Guianas and the northern Amazon Basin. Its range extends to Venezuela in the northwest; in the Amazon Basin, it is found in the downstream half of the basin, as well as in the Atlantic outlet region of the neighboring Tocantins-Araguaia River drainage to the southeast. A minor disjunct population is in Peru, and an Argentinian population is found in the tongue of land between Paraguay and southern Brazil.
The rufous-throated antbird is a species of bird in the family Thamnophilidae. It is found in Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.
The wing-banded antbird is a species of passerine bird in the antbird family, Thamnophilidae. It is placed in the monotypic genus Myrmornis. It is found in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.
The red-necked woodpecker is a species of bird in subfamily Picinae of the woodpecker family Picidae. It is found in every mainland South American country except Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
The ringed woodpecker is a species of bird in subfamily Picinae of the woodpecker family Picidae. It is found in every mainland South American country except Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
The acacia pied barbet or pied barbet is a species of bird in the family Lybiidae which is native to southern Africa.
The Guianan warbling antbird is an insectivorous bird in the antbird family, Thamnophilidae. It is found at lower levels in humid forest in the Guianas, far eastern Venezuela, and north-eastern Brazil.
