Rails and Gallinules

Status

Resident, with some local movement

Range

Widespread across India, generally in lowland wetland habitat

Habitat

Reedbeds, marsh grass and the vegetated edges of wetlands, rarely out in the open

IUCN

Least Concern

A compact, chestnut-capped rail with a grey face and breast and the rest of the body finely spangled dark brown and white. The orange-red bill and eye stand out against the muted plumage. Skulking by habit, usually seen picking through marsh grass at the reed edge rather than out on open mud, and quick to duck back into cover.

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Feb 2022Pallikaranai Marsh, Chennai, Tamil NaduWalking through short marsh grass, chestnut cap and grey face lit by low sun.

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Status

Resident and local migrant, breeding visitor in parts of its range

Range

Widespread across the subcontinent in suitable habitat, more often reported in the breeding season

Habitat

Tall wet grassland, paddy and marsh edges with dense cover

IUCN

Least Concern

The breeding male is slate-black overall with a red bill and a distinctive red frontal shield that swells above the forehead, and long greenish legs. Females and non-breeding males are streaked brown and far less conspicuous, closer in impression to a large rail than to the glossy black bird the species is known for. Skulks in dense grass and is far more often heard at night than seen by day.

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Jul 2021 · 500mm · 1/1250 · f/7.1 · ISO 800Chembarambakkam Lake, Kancheepuram, Tamil NaduHead up out of the grass, alert.

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Status

Resident and local migrant, uncommon and secretive

Range

Western Ghats, the Northeast, and parts of the Andaman Islands

Habitat

Dense moist forest floor near streams and wet ground, usually in heavy cover

IUCN

Least Concern

A rufous head, neck and breast contrasting with olive-brown upperparts and bold black-and-white barring across the flanks and belly. The bill is dark with a greenish base, and the eye is red-ringed. Extremely skulking — most sightings are brief views at forest edges or trails at dawn or dusk, or of a bird crossing open ground for a few seconds before vanishing back into cover.

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Feb 2020Thattekad Bird Sanctuary, Ernakulam, KeralaWalking across bare ground, rufous head and breast against barred black-and-white flanks.

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Status

Resident and local migrant, patchily recorded

Range

Widespread across India in suitable wetland habitat

Habitat

Marshes, wet paddy, reedbeds and vegetation at the edge of ponds and lakes

IUCN

Least Concern

A small crake with a rich rufous-orange head, neck and breast, dark brown upperparts finely barred with black, a short dark bill and bright red-pink legs. Like other crakes it stays close to cover, walking with a deliberate, high-stepping gait through marsh grass and reed litter, and is usually seen briefly at the edge of vegetation rather than out in the open.

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Feb 2018Manjeera Wildlife Sanctuary, Sangareddy, TelanganaClose head-and-shoulders portrait, red eye and dark bill catching the light.

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Status

Resident and winter visitor, patchily recorded

Range

Scattered wetland records across much of India

Habitat

Marshes, wet paddy and the reedy, weed-choked margins of ponds and lakes

IUCN

Least Concern

A tiny, secretive crake, smaller than a myna, with warm rufous upperparts finely barred and spangled with white, a grey face and breast, and a short, dull greenish-yellow bill. It creeps through dense marsh vegetation and floating weed, picking small invertebrates from the water's surface, and is far more often glimpsed briefly at the edge of cover than seen well; a bird feeding out in the open, as photographed here, is a good sighting.

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Feb 2018Manjeera Wildlife Sanctuary, Sangareddy, TelanganaStanding at the water's edge with something small held at the bill tip.

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