Features& Description
The Water Rail, Latin for “Rallus aquaticus”, is a marsh bird that usually lives in hiding.
Small in size, less than 30 cm, it has a long neck and a long, narrow, red beak.
Its back plumage is olive-brown with black spots, the head to the bottom of the breast being dark blue-gray.
The flanks and belly are marked with black and white bars. Legs are dull red, sometimes yellow.
The tail is very short, often raised and white underneath.
Habitat(Biotope)
The Water Rail evolves discreetly in the dense reeds of ponds and shallow water bays.
It often lives hidden in dense reedbeds and dense marshes, but can sometimes be seen at the edge of marsh vegetation.
Behavior& habits
The Water Rail is a bird that’s perfectly shaped to blend in with the reeds. It likes to wander along the water’s edge, hunting small invertebrates, eating vegetation and sometimes a few fry.
With large toes on its legs, it prefers to walk rather than fly, and moves quickly.
Reproductionand immature
The Water Rail builds its nest in a large, dense tuft of grass among the reeds, using stems and dead leaves.
6 to 10 eggs are incubated for almost 20 days.
The young eventually leave the nest when they reach their final plumage, after 7 to 8 weeks.
Cryor Voice
The Water Rail has a rich repertoire: from the grunt of an agonized pig “grruiit-groït-grui-gru” to the half-stifled moan “ooüüh”, not forgetting brief “kipp” sounds in case of alarm.
At night, it sings “kupp-kupp-kupp-kupp…” in long, vaguely accelerated series.
Le Rale Deau
Rale Deau
