Porzana pusilla

• Interesting Facts
• Common Names
• Description
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Interesting Facts

Common Names

Click on the language to view common names.

Description

Habitat

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 5,239 meters (0 to 17,188 feet).[1]

Ecology: Behaviour African and Australasian populations of this species are non-migratory or only make local movements in response to seasonal habitat changes1. Those populations in Europe and Asia however appear to be fully migratory1, most flying southward from late-August to October and returning to the northern breeding areas from March to May2. The species breeds in solitary pairs3, 4 in the spring , usually nesting during or just after the wet season (where this occurs)1. It is usually a solitary species, but can be found in pairs or family groups, and sometimes forages in small groups of up to 10 individuals in non-breeding areas2. The species forages diurnally but is most active in the early morning and late afternoon or evening1. Habitat The species frequents similar habitats throughout its range and throughout the year1, 2, 3, 4, 5, although its breeding areas are characterised by low, dense, tussocky or continuous vegetation such as flooded sedges and grasses1. It inhabits freshwater , brackish or saline marshy wetlands1, 5, both inland and coastal (Australasia)5, permanent and temporary, with dense emergent and floating vegetation1 (especially reeds, rushes, sedges, tall dense grasses and Typha spp. )3. Typical habitats include marshes, swamps , peat bogs , flooded meadows1, 2, 3, damp grassland1, seasonally flooded pans6 and depressions , tussocky grassland interspersed with patches of mud on the margins of open water1, 2, 3 (e.g. lakes and reservoirs )3, 5, pools in sand-dunes1, 5, swampy creeks , rivers5 and streams3, tall reedbeds (2-3 m high)2 with extensive mud, shallow puddles and Sesbania bushes1, and occasionally salt-marsh1, 5. The species also frequents marshy artificial wetlands such as irrigated fields of crops (e.g. rice)1, 5, sewage ponds1, 2, 5, salt-works2, 5, farm ponds1, 3, 5 and dense grassy vegetation in rural residential areas1, 5. Although the species shows a preference for shallowly flooded areas, breeding birds may occupy grassland and sedges flooded to a depth of 30 cm and will occur on floating vegetation or in tall shrubs flooded to a depth of 2 m2. Diet Its diet consists predominantly of adult and larval insects (e.g. beetles, bugs, Odonata, stoneflies, caddisflies, flies and mosquitos)1, 2, as well as annelids1 (up to 10 cm long)2, molluscs , small crustaceans (e.g. ostracods and copepods ), small fish1 (up to 2 cm long)2, amphibians2, and vegetative plant material and seeds1. Breeding site The nest is a shallow cup or platform of vegetation placed close to water on a grass tussock or in soft grass, usually 4-60 cm above the water level1. Occasionally the nest may be floating or anchored to vegetation in water, or placed in or under low bushes1. Management information Changes in water level during the nesting period should be avoided, cutting and burning of vegetation near the waters edge should be controlled and the maintenance of natural vegetation around fish ponds and rice-fields should be encouraged2.

[2].

List of Habitats:

•     4     Grassland   
  
•     4.6     Grassland - Subtropical/Tropical Seasonally Wet/Flooded   
  
•     5     Wetlands (inland)   
  
•     5.1     Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Rivers/Streams/Creeks (includes waterfalls )   
  
•     5.4     Wetlands (inland) - Bogs, Marshes, Swamps, Fens , Peatlands   
  
•     5.5     Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha)   
  
•     5.6     Wetlands (inland) - Seasonal/Intermittent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha)   
  
•     5.7     Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha)   
  
•     5.8     Wetlands (inland) - Seasonal/Intermittent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha)   
  
•     12     Marine Intertidal   
  
•     12.5     Marine Intertidal - Salt Marshes (Emergent Grasses)   
  
•     15     Artificial/Aquatic & Marine   
  
•     15.1     Artificial/Aquatic - Water Storage Areas (over 8ha)   
  
•     15.2     Artificial/Aquatic - Ponds (below 8ha)   
  
•     15.8     Artificial/Aquatic - Seasonally Flooded Agricultural Land   
[more info]

Taxonomy

Synonyms

Porzana pusilla (Pallas, 1776)

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Last scrutiny: 28-Nov-2006

Similar Species

Members of the genus Porzana

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 29 species and subspecies in this genus:

P. albicollis (White-Throated Crake) · P. albicollis albicollis (White-Throated Crake) · P. astrictocarpus (Little St. Helena Rail) · P. atra (Henderson Island Crake) · P. bicolor (Black-Tailed Crake) · P. carolina (Little American Water Hen) · P. cinerea (White-Browed Crake) · P. egregia (African Crake) · P. erythrops (San Cristobal Mountain Rail) · P. flavirostra (African Black Crake) · P. flaviventer (Yellow-Breasted Crake) · P. flaviventer flaviventer (Yellow-Breasted Crake) · P. fluminea (Australian Spotted Crake) · P. fusca (Ruddy-Breasted Crake) · P. fusca fusca (Ruddy-Breasted Crake) · P. marginalis (Hudsonian Curlew) · P. monasa (Kusaie Island Crake) · P. nigra (Miller's Rail) · P. palmeri (Laysan Crake) · P. parva (Little Crake) · P. parva parva (Little Crake) · P. paykullii (Band-Bellied Crake) · P. porzana (Spotted Crake) · P. pusilla (BaillonÌs Crake) · P. pusilla pusilla (BaillonÌs Crake) · P. sandwichensis (Hawaiian Crake) · P. spiloptera (Dot-Winged Crake) · P. tabuensis (Spotless Crake) · P. tabuensis tabuensis (Spotless Crake)

More Info

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Further Reading

• A guide to the birds of Nepal Christopher Helm (Publishers) Ltd. url p. 135.
• A hand-list of British birds, with an account of the distribution of each species in the British Isles and abroad. By Ernst Hartert, F. C. R. Jourdain, N. F. Ticehurst and H. F. Withersby. London, Witherby, 1912. url p. 213.
• A hand-list of the birds of Japan, by M. Ogawa. [Tokyo]1908. url p. 357.
• A list of British birds, comp. by a committee of the British ornithologists' union. London: British ornithologists' union, 1915. url p. 303.
• A manual of Philippine birds / by Richard C. McGregor. Manila: Bureau of Printing, 1909. url p. 71.
• A manual of Philippine birds, by Richard C. McGregor. .. Manila, Bureau of Printing, 1909. url p. 71.
• A manual of palæarctic birds, by H. E. Dresser. London, The author, 1902-03. url p. 708, p. 917.
• An environmental profile of the Black Sea Coast WCMC url p. 102, p. 28.
• Austral avian record; a scientific journal devoted primarily to the study of the Australian avifauna. London: Witherby. url p. 179.
• Aves / 1891 London: Printed by Taylor and Francis, 1891. url p. 147, p. xviii.
• Biosphere Reserves, Compilation 4, October 1986: programme on man and the biosphere (MAB) IUCN Conservation Monitoring Centre url p. 205, p. 209, p. 234.
• Birds. By Eugene W. Oates. London: Taylor and Francis; [etc., etc.], 1889-98. url p. 165.
• Birds. London, Taylor and Francis, 1889-1898. url .
• Boletim da Sociedade Portuguesa de Cie?ncias Naturais. Lisboa, Sociedade Portuguesa de Cie?ncias Naturais, 1908- url p. 165.
• Breviora. 1963 Cambridge, Mass.: Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, [1952- url p. 2.
• Bulletin - United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.];1877-1971. url p. 105, p. 132, p. 224, p. 253, p. 572, p. 606.
• Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History). London: BM(NH) url p. 443.
• Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. London: The Club, 1893- url p. 159.
• Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College. 101 1948 Cambridge, Mass.: The Museum, 1863- url p. 103, p. 335.
• Catalogue of the Birds in the British Museum. London, 1874-98. url p. 104, p. 106, p. 90.
• Catalogue of the Collection of Birds' Eggs in the British Museum / By E. W. Oates [and afterwards] by S. G. Reid [and] W. R. Ogilvie-Grant. London, 1901-12. url p. 117, p. 118.
• Catalogue of the collection of birds' eggs in the British museum (Natural history). London: Printed by order of the Trustees, 1901-12. url p. 117, p. 118.
• Check-list of birds of the world. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1931-1987. url p. 183.
• Check-list of the species of fishes known from the Philippine Archipelago, Manila, Bureau of printing, 1910. url p. 71.
• Checklists for the CORINE Biotopes Programme and its application in the PHARE countries of Central and East Europe: including comparisons with relevant conventions and agreements on the conservation of European species and habitats EC url p. 100.
• Contributions to the knowledge of the East African ornithology. Birds collected by the Swedish Mount Elgon Expedition 1920. Lund, C. Blom, 1923. url p. 42.
• Directory of Wetlands of International Importance. IUCN url p. 285, p. 288, p. 315, p. 318, p. 473, p. 775.
• Game, shore, and water birds of India, with additional references to their allied species in other parts of the world. London, W. Thacker, 1904. url .
• IUCN Directory of Afrotropical Protected Areas IUCN, UNEP url p. 695.
• Ibis. [London]Published for the British Ornithologists' Union by Academic Press. url p. 100, p. 12, p. 155, p. 188, p. 19, p. 215, p. 224, p. 245, p. 32, p. 336, p. 470, p. 557, p. 579, p. 677, p. 689, p. 717.
• In the Andamans and Nicobars; the narrative of a cruise in the schooner "Terrapin", with notices of the islands, their fauna, ethnology, etc., by C. Boden Kloss. .. London: J. Murray, 1903. url p. 330.
• Indian sporting birds / by Frank Finn. London: Francis Edwards, 1915. url p. 108.
• Journal of the Federated Malay States museums. Kuala Lumpur: F.M.S. Museums, 1906-1929. url p. 130.
• Madagascar: an environmental profile IUCN Conservation Monitoring Centre url p. 176.
• Nature Reserves of the Himalaya and the Mountains of Central Asia IUCN url p. 213, p. 468.
• Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. Washington, Biological Society of Washington url p. 223, p. 224, p. 225, p. 357, p. 361, p. 76, p. 95.
• Proceedings of the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales. Mosman, New South Wales [etc.]The Society. url p. 16, p. 30.
• Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. London: Academic Press, [etc.], 1833-1965. url , p. 458, p. 458.
• Special scientific report--wildlife / U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service. Washington, D.C.: The Service, 1949- url p. 121, p. 125, p. 183.
• Spolia zeylanica. S.l.: s.n. url , p. 181, p. 183, p. 24, p. 31, p. 34.
• Stray feathers. Journal of ornithology for India and its dependencies. Calcutta: s.n., 1872-1899. url p. 251.
• The Annals and magazine of natural history; zoology, botany, and geology being a continuation of the Annals combined with Loudon and Charlesworth's Magazine of Natural History. London, Taylor and Francis, Ltd. url p. 491, p. 80, p. 81, p. 82.
• The Auk. Washington, D.C.: American Ornithologists' Union, etc., 1884- url p. 281.
• The Australian zoologist. Sydney, Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales url p. 90.
• The Emu: official organ of the Australasian Ornithologists' Union. Melbourne: Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union, 1901- url p. 134, p. 26, p. 49.
• The Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. Bombay: The Society, url , , p. 163, p. 345, p. 5, p. 544, p. 620, p. 764, p. 943, p. 945, p. 970.
• The Journal of the Natural History Society of Siam. [Bangkok, Thailand]: The Society, url p. 39.
• The Marine Mammal Commission compendium of selected treaties, international agreements, and other relevant documents on marine resources, wildlife, and the environment / compiled by Richard L. Wallace. Washington, D.C.: The Commission; 1994 url p. 688.
• The birds of Britain: their distribution and habits / by A. H. Evans. Cambridge: University Press, 1916. url p. 271.
• The food of birds in India, by C.W. Mason, edited by H. Maxwell-Lefroy. Calcutta, Imperial Dept. of Agric. in India, 1911. url p. 250.
• The journal of the Natural History Society of Siam. [London: Luzac, 1914]-1924. url p. 42.
• The making of species, London, J. Lane Company, 1909. url .
• The making of species, by Douglas Dewar...and Frank Finn...with fifteen illustrations. London, J. Lane Company, 1909. url p. 251, p. 397.
• The nests and eggs of Indian birds / Allan O. Hume. London: R. H. Porter, 1889-1890. url p. 395, p. viii.
• The nests and eggs of Indian birds. London, R. H. Porter, 1889-90. url , .
• Treubia. Batavia: G. Kolff, 1919- url , .

Notes

Contributors

• BirdLife International 2009. Porzana pusilla. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloadedon 04February2012.
• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 10, 2012.
• IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. . Downloaded on January 28, 2012.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 12, 2007:

• BeBIF Provider, Royal Museum of Central Africa - Albertian Rift Birds
• Biologiezentrum der Oberoesterreichischen Landesmuseen, Biologiezentrum Linz
• European Environment Agency, EUNIS
• Israel Nature and Parks Authority, Israel Nature and Parks Authority
• Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, Terrestrial vertebrate specimens
• National Chemical Laboratory, IndOBIS, Indian Ocean Node of OBIS
• National Science Museum of Korea, National Science Museum of Korea Bird
• OZCAM
• Provider, Online Zoological Collections of Australian Museums
• The Swedish Museum of Natural History
• , Birds
• University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
• , Bird specimens

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 9242
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: ITS-708058
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 4490920
• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 176251
• IUCN ID: 235035
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 141797

Footnotes

1. Mean = 620.440 meters (2,035.564 feet), Standard Deviation = 875.630 based on 28,136 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
2. BirdLife International 2009. Porzana pusilla. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 04 February 2012. [back]

©2004-2012 David Stang. All rights reserved.