Little Wood Rail

The little wood rail (''Aramides mangle'') is a species of bird in the subfamily Rallinae of the rail, crake, and coot family Rallidae. It is endemic to Brazil.HBW and BirdLife International (2021) Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world. Version 6. Available at: http://datazone.birdlife.org/userfiles/file/Species/Taxonomy/HBW-BirdLife_Checklist_v6_Dec21.zip retrieved August 7, 2022

Taxonomy and systematics

The little wood rail is monotypic.

Description

The little wood rail is long; one female weighed . It is the smallest member of genus ''Aramides''. The sexes are alike. They have a stout greenish bill with red at the base of the maxilla and red legs and feet. Adults have a gray head, neck, and upper back, and the rest of the back and their wings are olive brown to greenish olive. Their rump, tail, and undertail coverts are black. Their throat is white and their breast and belly rufous.Taylor, B., A. Bonan, P. F. D. Boesman, and E. de Juana (2020). Little Wood-Rail (''Aramides mangle''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.liwrai1.01 retrieved October 14, 2022

Distribution and habitat

The little wood rail is found in Brazil from northeastern Pará south along the coast to São Paulo state and somewhat inland in the northeast. It has also been documented as a vagrant in French Guiana.Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, J. F. Pacheco, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 24 July 2022. Species Lists of Birds for South American Countries and Territories. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCCountryLists.htm retrieved July 24, 2022 The species mostly inhabits coastal swamps and lagoons including mangrove forest. Inland it is found in ''caatinga'', a rather dry biome.

Behavior

Movement

The little wood rail is resident along the coast. It occurs irregularly in the inland ''caatinga'', movements which appear to be range extensions and contractions rather than true migration.

Feeding

Almost nothing is known about the little wood rail's foraging behavior or diet. It has been observed probing mud and holding a crab.

Breeding

The little wood rail has been recorded breeding between May and July in the ''caatinga'' and between October and November in the coastal southern part of its range. The few known nests were cups of sticks, grass, and dead leaves with clutches of five or six eggs. Nothing else is known about the species' breeding biology.

Vocalization

The little wood rail's apparent song is a " netrating, loud 'pik-pik-pik' or 'pyok-pyok-pyok...'". Members of a pair often reply to each other at slightly different pitches.

Status

The IUCN has assessed the little wood rail as being of Least Concern, though its population size and trend are unknown. No immediate threats have been identified. However, "In view of its potentially restricted distribution, the almost total lack of knowledge about its natural history, and the possibility of threats to its wetland habitats hespecies should at least be considered Data Deficient and worthy of urgent investigation."

References

External links

*Associação Mãe-da-lu
Little Wood-Rail (Aramides mangle)
- Photos, sounds, notes

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1259592

Aramides
Birds of the Atlantic Forest
Birds of the Caatinga
Endemic birds of Brazil
Birds described in 1825
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot