The water rail is a secretive bird which can often be seen rather than heard, and will freeze if surprised in the open. It has a strange call which sounds a little like a piglet screaming interspersed with groans and grunts, that is usually uttered at dawn and dusk. Although its flight looks weak, the water rail is capable of flying long distances particularly during their nocturnal migration.
Breeding birds: 1,100 territories
Family: Rails, Gallinules, And Coots
Adult male water rails have chestnut-coloured upperparts with black patches, and fine white markings on the primary coverts and flight feathers. The underparts are slate-grey with dark and white barring on the flanks, while the undertail coverts are buff with black spots.
On the head, the face is slate-grey with a chestnut line in the middle of the crown and the nape is chestnut with black markings. The long, slender bill is red, the eyes are dark red, and the legs and feet are light yellowish brown.
Females are similar to the male but are smaller and they have a shorter bill.
Juvenile water rails have duller upperparts which are brown rather than chestnut. The underparts are pale buff with brown and black bars, and the flanks are buff with black bars. The undertail coverts have no black spots. The chin is white, and the bill, legs, and feet are duller than adults.
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Water rails breed between March and June depending on the range. They are seasonally monogamous and form pair bonds, and produce 1 or 2 broods per season. They breed in wetlands, in lakes, marshes, and reedbeds, or in dry areas with trees. Both parents build the nest which is a bulky cup-shaped structured made from dead leaves and plant stems, and may be hidden with a canopy of vegetation.
Water rails lay 6-11 smooth, glossy, off-white eggs with dark brown, reddish, or grey blotches which are incubated by both sexes for 19-22 days. Chicks are precocial and covered with black down and a white bill. They can feed themselves 5 days after hatching but are fed by their parents for 20-30 days after hatching. They are fully independent and can fly 7-8 weeks later, and reach sexual maturity at 1 year.
Water rails are omnivorous and forage in shallow wetlands for insects, larvae, worms, small fish, molluscs, crustaceans, and spiders. They will also eat reptiles, amphibians, carrion, and even small mammals and birds. In autumn and winter, they supplement their diet with plant matter, such as roots, seeds, berries, and fruit.
Water rails can be seen all year round across the UK except for upland areas, but they are thinly distributed, and their secretive nature means they can be hard to spot. The best places to look out for them are in eastern England, and along the south coast, where they can be found by water, in sedge fen, reedbeds, woodland ponds, and wet ditches.
Water rails have been known to kill small birds such as wrens by impaling them on their beaks.
