The austral rail is a Vulnerable species of bird in subfamily Rallinae of family Rallidae, the rails, gallinules, and coots. It is found in Argentina and Chile.
Region
Patagonia and southern Andes
Typical Environment
Occurs patchily in southern Argentina and Chile, especially in dense freshwater marshes and wet meadows. It favors stands of rushes and sedges with shallow, slow-moving or still water and thick ground cover. Birds skulk along muddy margins under vegetation, rarely venturing into open water. It may also use overgrown ditches and occasionally brackish marshes where cover is abundant. Habitat quality is closely tied to stable water levels and intact emergent vegetation.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1200 m
Climate Zone
Temperate
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
A shy, marsh-dwelling rail of southern South America, the austral rail is most often detected by its loud, grating calls rather than seen. It depends on dense rush- and sedge-filled wetlands, making it vulnerable to drainage, burning, and overgrazing. Conservation actions focus on protecting Patagonian marshes and controlling invasive predators. Its name “antarcticus” reflects its far-southern range, not Antarctica itself.
Temperament
secretive and skulking
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats; reluctant flier, typically making low, brief flights
Social Behavior
Usually solitary or in pairs, becoming territorial in the breeding season. Nests are placed in dense rush clumps over or near shallow water, built from grasses and sedges. Pairs likely share incubation and care for precocial black chicks that follow adults soon after hatching.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Vocalizations include loud, grating series of kek-kek notes, squeals, and clattering calls. Most vocal at dawn and dusk, and pairs may engage in antiphonal duets that carry across marshes.
Plumage
Brown, streaked upperparts with an ashy-gray face and breast, and boldly barred black-and-white flanks; undertail often warm buff to rufous.
Diet
Takes aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates such as insects, worms, snails, and small crustaceans, supplemented by seeds of grasses and sedges. It probes mud and leaf litter and picks prey from submerged vegetation. Opportunistically may consume small amphibians or other tiny vertebrates.
Preferred Environment
Forages along the edges of dense emergent vegetation in shallow water and on muddy margins. Prefers cover-rich microhabitats within marshes and wet meadows, staying concealed while feeding.
