The ruddy-breasted crake, or ruddy crake, is a waterbird in the rail and crake family Rallidae, formerly included in the genus Porzana.
Region
South, Southeast, and East Asia
Typical Environment
Occurs from the Indian Subcontinent through Southeast Asia to southern China, Taiwan, and parts of Japan and the Philippines, extending to the Greater Sundas. Favors freshwater and brackish marshes, rice paddies, wet grasslands, and reedbeds with dense cover. Often uses ditches, canals, and the vegetated margins of ponds and slow streams. In agricultural landscapes it readily occupies flooded fields and fallows, skulking along vegetated edges. Some northern populations undertake seasonal movements, while tropical populations are largely resident.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 2000 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 2/5
The ruddy-breasted crake is a small, secretive rail that frequents dense marsh vegetation and rice paddies, often revealing itself only at dusk. It was formerly placed in the genus Porzana but is now in Zapornia. Its cocked tail often flashes white undertail coverts, and it is more often heard than seen. It benefits from artificial wetlands like rice fields but can be affected by drainage of natural marshes.
In Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Ruddy-breasted Crake in Manglajodi, Odisha
Temperament
secretive and skulking
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats, low and brief flights over vegetation
Social Behavior
Usually solitary or in pairs, becoming more vocal and conspicuous at dawn and dusk. Nests are placed in dense wetland vegetation, often a woven cup or dome of grasses and reeds near water. Both sexes likely share incubation and chick rearing, with downy young leaving the nest soon after hatching. Defends small territories during the breeding season.
Migratory Pattern
Partial migrant
Song Description
Calls include sharp, repeated krek or kek notes, rattling trills, and squeaky whistles. Vocal mostly at night and during twilight, with bursts of rapid, carrying notes from dense cover.
