Uniform crake
| Uniform crake | |
|---|---|
| |
| Amaurolimnas concolor | |
Scientific classification
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Gruiformes |
| Family: | Rallidae |
| Genus: | Amaurolimnas Sharpe,1893 |
| Species: | A. concolor
|
| Binomial name | |
| Amaurolimnas concolor (Gosse,1847)
| |
| |
| Synonyms | |
Theuniform crake(Amaurolimnas concolor) is a species ofbirdin the subfamily Rallinae of the rail, crake, and coot familyRallidae.[4][5]It is found inMexico,most ofCentral America,and in nineSouth Americancountries.[6][7]
Taxonomy and systematics
[edit]The uniform crake was first described in genusRallusand at various times since then placed in generaAramidesandLaterallusbefore its presentAmaurolimnas.[3][2]It is the only member of that genus and has two extant subspecies,A. c. guatemalensisandA. c. castaneus.Thenominate subspecies,theJamaican wood rail(A. c. concolor), which wasendemictoJamaica,is extinct.[4]
Description
[edit]The uniform crake is 20 to 23 cm (7.9 to 9.1 in) long and weighs about 95 to 130 g (3.4 to 4.6 oz). The sexes are alike. They have a medium length yellowish green bill, a red eye, and pinkish red legs and feet.A. c. guatemalensisis the larger of the two living subspecies; it has olivaceous brown upperparts and brown underparts.A. c. castaneusis also olivaceous brown above, but has rufous brown underparts.[3]
Distribution and habitat
[edit]The uniform crake has a highlydisjunct distribution.SubspeciesA. c. guatemalensisis found fromVeracruzandOaxacain southern Mexico through Central America (exceptEl Salvador) and westernColombiainto northwesternEcuador.A. c. castaneusis found in northernVenezuela,the Guianas,several separate areas ofBrazilboth inland and coastal, eastern Ecuador andPeru,and locally inBolivia.It inhabits a variety of wet to almost dry landscapes including wooded swamps, flooded forest, heavily vegetated ravines and streams, and dense vegetation on the edges ofsecondary forestand cultivated areas. In elevation it ranges from sea level to about 1,000 m (3,300 ft).[3]
Behavior
[edit]Movement
[edit]The movements of the uniform crake, if any, are not known.[3]
Feeding
[edit]The uniform crake mostly forages in cover, where it searches leaf litter and other detritus and digs in mud with its bill. Its diet includes earthworms, insects and spiders, small amphibians and lizards, seeds, and berries.[3]
Breeding
[edit]The uniform crake's breeding season is essentially unknown; in Costa Rica it does include July. It is thought to be territorial in the breeding season. One nest in Costa Rica was in a swamp forest near a stream. It was a cup made of leaves in the top of a vine-covered stump and contained four eggs.[3]
Vocalization
[edit]The uniform crake's song is a "series of 6–20 upslurred 'tooee' whistles". Pairs maintain contact with "clear, but not loud, whistled 'tooo' notes". The species' alarm call is "a sharp, nasal 'kek'".[3]
Status
[edit]TheIUCNhas assessed the uniform crake as being of Least Concern. It has a very large range and an unknown population size that is believed to be decreasing. No immediate threats have been identified.[1]Its distribution is spotty even within larger areas of its range. "Because of its secretive habits [the] species is undoubtedly overlooked, and is possibly more widely distributed than currently known, but [is] certainly adversely affected by destruction of its forest habitats."[3]
References
[edit]- ^abBirdLife International (2021)."Uniform CrakeAmaurolimnas concolor".IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.2021:e.T22692601A163610586.doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22692601A163610586.en.Retrieved14 October2022.
- ^abRemsen, 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.htmretrieved July 24, 2022
- ^abcdefghiTaylor, B. (2020). Uniform Crake (Amaurolimnas concolor), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA.https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.unicra1.01retrieved October 14, 2022
- ^abGill, F.; Donsker, D.; Rasmussen, P., eds. (August 2022)."Finfoots, flufftails, rails, trumpeters, cranes, Limpkin".IOC World Bird List.v 12.2.RetrievedAugust 9,2022.
- ^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.zipretrieved August 7, 2022
- ^Chesser, R. T., S. M. Billerman, K. J. Burns, C. Cicero, J. L. Dunn, B. E. Hernández-Baños, R. A. Jiménez, A. W. Kratter, N. A. Mason, P. C. Rasmussen, J. V. Remsen, Jr., D. F. Stotz, and K. Winker. 2022. Check-list of North American Birds (online). American Ornithological Society.https://checklist.aou.org/taxa
- ^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.htmretrieved July 24, 2022