The russet-crowned crake (''Rufirallus viridis'') is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

in subfamily Rallinae of family

Rallidae The rails, or Rallidae, are a large cosmopolitan family of small- to medium-sized, ground-living birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity and includes the crakes, coots, and gallinules. Many species are associated with wetlands, althoug ...

, the rails, gallinules, and coots. It is found in

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

the Guianas The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories: * French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France * ...

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

, and

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

.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, 2022Remsen, 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

Taxonomy and systematics

The russet-crowned crake's taxonomy is unsettled. The

International Ornithological Committee The International Ornithologists' Union, formerly known as the International Ornithological Committee, is a group of about 200 international ornithologists, and is responsible for the International Ornithological Congress and other international ...

(IOC) and

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

Handbook of the Birds of the World The ''Handbook of the Birds of the World'' (HBW) is a multi-volume series produced by the Spanish publishing house Lynx Edicions in partnership with BirdLife International. It is the first handbook to cover every known living species of bird. T ...

(HBW) place the russet-crowned crake in genus ''Rufirallus'' with the

chestnut-headed crake The chestnut-headed crake (''Rufirallus castaneiceps'') is a species of bird in subfamily Rallinae of family Rallidae, the rails, gallinules, and coots. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.HBW and BirdLife International ...

(''R. castaneiceps''). The South American Classification Committee of the

American Ornithological Society The American Ornithological Society (AOS) is an ornithological organization based in the United States. The society was formed in October 2016 by the merger of the American Ornithologists' Union (AOU) and the Cooper Ornithological Society. Its m ...

and the

Clements taxonomy ''The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World'' is a book by Jim Clements which presents a list of the bird species of the world. The most recent printed version is the sixth edition (2007), but has been updated yearly, the last version in 2022 ...

place it in genus ''Anurolimnas'' with the chestnut-headed crake and black-banded crake (''A. fasciatus''). The IOC places the latter species in genus ''Laterallus'' and HBW places it in genus ''Porzana''.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. A classification of the bird species of South America. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm retrieved July 24, 2022Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2022. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2022. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/ retrieved November 10, 2022 The worldwide taxonomic systems agree that the species has two subspecies, the

nominate Nomination is part of the process of selecting a candidate for either election to a public office, or the bestowing of an honor or award. A collection of nominees narrowed from the full list of candidates is a short list. Political office In the ...

''R.(or A.) v. viridis'' and ''R.(or A.) v. brunnescens''.

Description

The russet-crowned crake is long. Males weigh and females . The sexes are alike. Adults have a black bill, red legs, gray face, and russet crown. The nominate subspecies has brownish olive upperparts and rufous underparts. Juveniles are light brown with a black face and dull pink legs. Adults of ''R. v. brunnescens'' are slightly larger than the nominate and have browner upperparts and a paler head and underparts.Taylor, B. (2020). Russet-crowned Crake (''Anurolimnas viridis''), 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.ruccra1.01 retrieved November 25, 2022

Distribution and habitat

The nominate subspecies of russet-crowned crake is widely distributed from far eastern Colombia and southern Venezuela east through the Guianas into Brazil and south and west into eastern Peru, northern and eastern Bolivia, and eastern Paraguay. A separate population is found in Ecuador's

Zamora-Chinchipe Province Zamora Chinchipe (), Province of Zamora Chinchipe is a province of the Republic of Ecuador, located at the southeastern end of the Amazon Basin, which shares borders with the Ecuadorian provinces of Azuay and Morona Santiago to the north, Loja a ...

and another in southeastern Brazil between the states of

Alagoas Alagoas (, ) is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil and is situated in the eastern part of the Northeast Region. It borders: Pernambuco (N and NW); Sergipe (S); Bahia (SW); and the Atlantic Ocean (E). Its capital is the city of Maceió. It ...

and

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...

. ''R. v. brunnescens'' is found in north-central Colombia from the lower

Cauca River The Cauca River () is a river in Colombia that lies between the Occidental and Central cordilleras. From its headwaters in southwestern Colombia near the city of Popayán, it joins the Magdalena River near Magangue in Bolivar Department, and th ...

valley east into the middle

Magdalena River The Magdalena River ( es, Río Magdalena, ; less commonly ) is the main river of Colombia, flowing northward about through the western half of the country. It takes its name from the biblical figure Mary Magdalene. It is navigable through much of ...

valley. The russet-crowned crake mostly inhabits terrestrial landscapes; in contrast to many other species in its family it is usually not found in marshes. It is found in second-growth sapling thickets, grassy or brushy pastures, overgrown wastelands and roadsides, and gardens at the edges of small communities. In elevation it ranges from sea level to .

Behavior

Movement

The russet-crowned crake's movements, if any, have not been documented.

Feeding

Almost nothing is known about the russet-crowned crake's foraging behavior or diet. It is known to mostly feed in cover and its diet includes insects and grass seeds.

Breeding

The russet-crowned crake's breeding season spans from January to June. It makes a ball-shaped nest with a side entrance from dead grass. It is typically hidden about up in a shrub or in other dense vegetation. The clutch size is one to three eggs, but nothing else is known about its breeding biology.

Vocalization

The russet-crowned crake is most vocal in early morning and evening. Its call has been described as a "dry rattling like the sound of a seashell wind chime".

Status

The

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

has assessed the russet-crowned crake as being of Least Concern. It has a very large range but its population size and trend are not known. No immediate threats have been identified. The nominate subspecies is believed to be common across much of its range but ''R. v. brunnescens'' status is not known.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1263893 russet-crowned crake Birds of Colombia Birds of Ecuador Birds of the Guiana Shield Birds of the Atlantic Forest Birds of the Brazilian Amazon Birds of the Bolivian Amazon Birds of Peruvian Amazonia Birds of the Venezuelan Amazon russet-crowned crake Taxonomy articles created by Polbot