Alternative name: Grey-necked Wood Rail
- Aramides cajaneus
Identification
33–40 cm (13-15¾ in)
Large. Bill moderately long, yellowish at base, greenish at tip; eyes, bare eyering, and legs coral red. Head and longish neck gray; throat paler; crown tinged brown; upperparts olive; breast and sides cinnamon rufous; rearparts including abdomen, rump, and tail black; primaries rufous chestnut (usually concealed at rest).
Immatures are duller and the bill and legs are dusky.
Distribution
From Costa Rica south through Central and South America. Also in Trinidad.
Taxonomy
Formerly included in Gray-necked Wood Rail.
Subspecies
There are 3 subspecies1:
- A. c. latens - San Miguel Islands and Pearl Islands (Panama)
- A. c. morrisoni - Pearl Islands (San José and Pedro González)
- A. c. cajaneus - Costa Rica to northern Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil and the Guianas
Habitat
Floodplain lakes, wet open areas, damp floor of mature rain forest but can also be found in forest remnants. Coastal marshland, mangrove woods, Hilly woodland with pond in an urban setting with cultivated and native trees, shrubs and herbs. Found near streams and in swamps and mangroves. Tropical dry forest. Observed at heights from 30 m and 610 m. Recorded at heights up to 2300m.
Behaviour
Diet
They have a varied diet including seeds, frogs and crabs.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2014)
- Gill, F and D Donsker (Eds). 2015. IOC World Bird Names (version 5.3). Available at http://www.worldbirdnames.org/.
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Gray-cowled Wood Rail. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 26 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Gray-cowled_Wood_Rail
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
