The rufous-sided crake (''Laterallus melanophaius'') is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

in subfamily Rallinae of family

Rallidae Rails (avian family Rallidae) are a large, Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan family (biology), family of small- to medium-sized terrestrial and/or semi-amphibious birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity in its forms, and includes ...

, the rails, gallinules, and coots.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, 2022 It is found in every mainland South American country except Chile.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. 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 rufous-sided crake 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 th ...

''L. m. melanophaius'' and ''L. m. oenops''. What is now the white-throated crake (''L. albigularis'') was for a time treated as a third subspecies.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, 2022

Description

The rufous-sided crake is long and weighs about . The sexes are alike. Both subspecies' bills have a gray

maxilla In vertebrates, the maxilla (: maxillae ) is the upper fixed (not fixed in Neopterygii) bone of the jaw formed from the fusion of two maxillary bones. In humans, the upper jaw includes the hard palate in the front of the mouth. The two maxil ...

with a pea green cutting edge and a pale pea green

mandible In jawed vertebrates, the mandible (from the Latin ''mandibula'', 'for chewing'), lower jaw, or jawbone is a bone that makes up the lowerand typically more mobilecomponent of the mouth (the upper jaw being known as the maxilla). The jawbone i ...

with a white tip. Their legs and feet are light gray brown to olive brown. The nominate subspecies has dark olive brown upperparts with a gray tinge around the eye. The face and sides of the breast are rufous to cinnamon rufous. The throat and center of the breast are white, the flanks and belly barred white and blackish brown, and the undertail

coverts A covert feather or tectrix on a bird is one of a set of feathers, called coverts (or ''tectrices''), which cover other feathers. The coverts help to smooth airflow over the wings and tail. Ear coverts The ear coverts are small feathers behind t ...

are dark cinnamon rufous. Subspecies ''L. m. oenops'' is similar to the nominate, but has paler upperparts and is rufous on the forecrown and around the eye.Schulenberg, T. S. (2020). Rufous-sided Crake (''Laterallus melanophaius''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (T. S. Schulenberg, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.ruscra1.01 retrieved November 28, 2022

Distribution and habitat

The nominate subspecies of rufous-sided crake has much the larger range of the two. It is found from coastal Venezuela east through

the Guianas The Guianas, also spelled Guyanas or Guayanas, are a geographical region in north-eastern South America. Strictly, the term refers to the three Guianas: Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana, formerly British, Dutch, and French Guiana respectiv ...

and separately from central and eastern Brazil south through eastern Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay into northern Argentina. Subspecies ''L. m. oenops'' is found from southern Colombia south through eastern Ecuador into eastern Peru and east into western Brazil. The species primarily inhabits freshwater marshes and similar landscapes such as flooded pastures and the edges of ponds and oxbow lakes .

Behavior

Movement

The rufous-sided crake is not known to migrate.

Feeding

The rufous-sided crake usually forages in dense grassy vegetation but also in the open close to cover. It forages in mud and vegetation for its primary diet of small

arthropod Arthropods ( ) are invertebrates in the phylum Arthropoda. They possess an arthropod exoskeleton, exoskeleton with a cuticle made of chitin, often Mineralization (biology), mineralised with calcium carbonate, a body with differentiated (Metam ...

s; seeds and leaves are also eaten.

Breeding

Only fragments are known about the rufous-sided crake's breeding biology. Its nesting season(s) are not known for most of its range but include September and October in Argentina. Its nest is a globe of leaves lined with leaf shreds, dry grass, and feathers. It is placed on or just above the ground and has a side entrance. The incubation period is about 20 days.

Vocalization

The rufous-sided crake's song is "a rubbery musical trill" much like those of other ''Laterallus'' crakes. Its calls include ""high-pitched tinkling calls short ''treeeeeng'' anda harsh, descending ''djreer''."

Status

The

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

has assessed the rufous-sided 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. It is thought uncommon to locally common in Ecuador and fairly common in Peru. "Human activity has little short-term direct effect on Rufous-sided Crake, other than the local effects of habitat destruction."

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1267636 rufous-sided crake Birds of Venezuela Birds of the Guiana Shield Birds of the Amazon rainforest Birds of Argentina Birds of Brazil Birds of Bolivia Birds of Paraguay Birds of Uruguay rufous-sided crake Taxa named by Louis Pierre Vieillot Taxonomy articles created by Polbot