Slaty-legged Crake
Rallina eurizonoides
Small, chickenlike dweller of dense forests and tangled edges. Dark brown above, with orange head and breast and black-and-white-striped sides. Juvenile similar but with brown head and breast, narrower white stripes below. Dark lead-gray legs distinguish this species from Red-legged, Band-bellied, and Ruddy-breasted crakes, which also show different underpart patterns. Sings at night from favored tree perches, a series of doubled hoots that recall Mountain Scops-Owl.
Identification
The slaty-legged crake is about 25 cm long. Its body is flattened laterally to allow easier passage through the undergrowth. It has long toes and a short tail. Colouring includes a brown back, chestnut head and breast, and strong black-and-white barring on the flanks, belly and undertail. The throat is white, the bill is yellowish, and the legs are green. Sexes are similar; juveniles are dark brown above and below, although they have the belly barring and white throat.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Rallina eurizonoides
- Authority
- (Lafresnaye, 1845)
- Order
- Gruiformes
- Family
- Rallidae
- Genus
- Rallina
Range and habitat
Its breeding habitat is swamps and similar wet areas in well-wooded country across south Asia east from India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka to the Philippines and Indonesia. The rails are mainly permanent residents throughout their range, but some northern populations migrate further south in winter.
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Slaty-legged crakes are territorial, but are quite secretive, hiding in bushes when disturbed. They probe with their bill in mud or shallow water, also picking up food by sight. They forage for berries and insects on the ground, or clambering through bushes and undergrowth. They nest in a dry location on the ground or low bush usually near forest paths and forest streams, laying 4–8 eggs. A study conducted in Nilambur, Kerala in southern India shows that the incubation period was about 20 days. full nest video with information is available on channel- Wild India by Sachin Main
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds

Nashville Warbler
Leiothlypis ruficapilla
Small warbler with sharply pointed bill. Look for gray head, white eyering, yellow underparts (including throat), and olive upperparts. Sometimes pumps tail. Two disjunct breeding populations are very similar in appearance. Breeds in coniferous or mixed forests, often near clearings, second-growth, or bogs. In migration and winter, tends to be found in patchy woodland or brushy areas, including field edges and thickets. Winters primarily in Mexico. Listen for its loud chipping song, broken into two parts. Compare dull immature Nashville with Virginia’s Warbler; Nashvilles always have greenish wings. Also sometimes mistaken for larger gray-headed warblers like Mourning or Connecticut, but Nashville is much smaller, shorter-tailed, and sharper-billed.

White-winged Cliff-Chat
Monticola semirufus
An attractive and distinctive chat of the Abyssinian highlands. Both sexes have dark upperparts and a large white patch in the middle of the wing. Males have a clean black hood and a red-orange belly, while females appear entirely dark save for the white wing patch, though close inspection reveals fine barring on the belly and rufous tones near the vent. Similar to Mocking Cliff-Chat, but easily separated by the white patch in the middle of the wing, rather than on the shoulder. The pretty, thrush-like song consists of low whistles and burry notes in short phrases.

Puna Ibis
Plegadis ridgwayi
Rather stocky, all-dark ibis of wetlands and lakes in high Andes; also wanders to coastal lowlands, where can be locally numerous. Usually in small groups. Feeds by probing with its downcurved bill. Breeding adult has dark chestnut head and neck, and red face. Nonbreeding and immature have whitish streaking on head and neck, and duller face. In flight, feet project only a short distance beyond tail tip. Compare with more slender and long-legged White-faced Ibis, but no range overlap.
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