Grey-cowled Wood Rail

Overview

The grey-cowled wood rail, also known as the grey-necked wood rail (Aramides cajaneus), is a large bird in the rail family. It is a species of forest rail found in the forests, mangroves, and swamps of Central and South America.

Identification

• Measures 33–40 cm in length and weighs 320–465 g, making it notably large for a wood rail.
• Features a medium-grey head and neck, olive-green to dark brown upperparts, rufous chest and flanks, and a black belly, rump, and tail.
• Has coral-red legs, a bright greenish-yellow bill, and red eyes.
• Produces a loud, repetitive cackling call described as "pop-tiyi pop-tiyi co-co-co-co-co" or "chitico chitico cao-cao-cao", often sung in duet.

Habitat

This species inhabits subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, mangrove forests, and swamps across Central and South America, ranging from sea level to 2,000 metres. One subspecies, A. c. avicenniae, is restricted to coastal southeastern Brazil and is almost completely confined to mangrove forests.

Diet

It feeds on a wide variety of items including molluscs, arthropods, frogs, seeds, grains, leaves, berries, and palm fruits. Foraging behaviour involves hammering snail shells to extract the meat and jumping to break off berry clusters, while in mangroves it commonly eats crabs.

Did you know?

The grey-cowled wood rail is known to feed on the faeces of giant otters, visiting their latrine sites to consume the waste.