Austral Rail

Overview

The austral rail, or Rallus antarcticus, is a Vulnerable bird in the family Rallidae. It is a monotypic species that is found in southern South America.

Identification

• Approximately 20 cm long with dull brown upperparts and buff-edged black centres to the back feathers.
• Gray face and throat, olive brown breast, and flanks barred with black and white.
• Juveniles have sooty tips on the breast feathers and a white throat.
• Vocalisations include a series of high-pitched notes such as 'pee', 'peeree', and 'peek', often given in duet, as well as low booming sounds and a drawn-out single squeal.

Habitat

The species is patchily distributed in the Magallanes Region of southern Chile and between the Río Negro and Santa Cruz departments in southern Argentina. It primarily inhabits coastal wet fields, meadows, rushy lake shores, and reedbeds, though it was formerly found as far north as Santiago and Buenos Aires.

Diet

Little is known about the austral rail's specific diet and foraging behaviour, but it is assumed to be similar to that of the Ecuadorian rail (R. aequatorialis), which maintains an eclectic diet.

Did you know?

The species was declared extinct for a period, with no documented records between 1959 and 1998. Its nest, which holds eight eggs, is a simple depression in the ground lined with grass and rushes, typically hidden under a bramble.