Slaty-breasted wood rail facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Slaty-breasted wood rail |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Aramides
|
| Species: |
saracura
|
 |
|
The slaty-breasted wood rail (Aramides saracura) is a cool bird that lives in parts of South America. It belongs to the rail family, which also includes birds like crakes and coots. You can find this bird in countries such as Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay.
Contents
About the Slaty-breasted Wood Rail
This bird is special because it's the only one of its kind in its group. Scientists call it "monotypic," meaning it doesn't have any very close relatives that are different species.
What Does It Look Like?
The slaty-breasted wood rail is about 34 to 37 centimeters (about 13 to 14.5 inches) long. That's roughly the length of a school ruler! One male bird weighed about 540 grams (around 19 ounces), which is like the weight of a small pineapple.
Both male and female birds look very similar. They have a green beak with a bluish bottom part. Their eyes are red, and their legs and feet are reddish to yellowish-brown. Most of their head, throat, chest, and belly are a dark gray color, like slate. The back of their neck and their shoulders are a warm chestnut color. Their back is olive green, and their tail is black. Young birds have not been fully described yet.
Where Does It Live?
You can find the slaty-breasted wood rail in southeastern Brazil. Its home range stretches from southern Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo, going south and west into eastern Paraguay and northeastern Argentina.
This bird usually lives in forests and woodlands that are a bit wet. It often likes swampy areas or places along streams. However, it usually stays away from wide-open marshy areas.
How Does It Behave?
Movement
The slaty-breasted wood rail seems to stay in the same area all year round. It doesn't usually migrate to different places.
Feeding Habits
This bird mostly eats small creatures it finds on the ground. Its diet includes earthworms, beetle larvae, and other small insects.
Reproduction
Scientists don't know everything about when the slaty-breasted wood rail breeds. However, it seems to lay eggs between November and February. Only one nest has ever been found and studied. This nest was hidden in a thick bush and held four or five eggs. There isn't much more information known about how these birds raise their young.
Vocalization
The slaty-breasted wood rail usually calls out during the day. It makes many loud, noisy sounds. Some of its calls include "po-quit kwaa kwaa kwaa," "po-peek," and "po-pereek." These calls often last for many minutes, and the birds sometimes sing them as a duet. It also has an "irritated" call, which is a fast series of "quir" notes.
What Is Its Status?
The IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) has looked at the slaty-breasted wood rail. They have decided it is a species of "Least Concern." This means they don't think it's in immediate danger of disappearing.
Even though it has a large area where it lives, scientists don't know exactly how many of these birds there are. They believe the number of birds might be going down. No big threats have been found for the species right now. Its situation in most of its home range is not very clear. Because of this, and because we don't know much about its life, some people think it should be classified as "Data Deficient." This means more information is needed to truly understand its status.
