Photo: King Rail, Joshua Galicki/Audubon Photography Awards
Evelyn Novins
The King Rail, also sometimes called the marsh hen because of its habitat, is a slender chicken-sized bird with a long, slightly downcurved bill and a short tail. It is mostly brown with the upper feathers being mixed with brown and rust. The sides are barred distinctively with white, while its neck and breast are a soft uniform rusty/cinnamon color. Its feet are large with exceptionally long toes.
King Rails live in the shallow freshwater marshes along the Atlantic coast from southern Canada to the Gulf Coast. They also inhabit inland marshes along rivers such as the Mississippi. The birds from Canada and Maine migrate south while the southern birds remain in their general area year round.
King Rail populations have declined over the last ten years primarily due to habitat loss. King Rails are among northern Virginia birds that BirdLife International’s State of the Birds 2022 identified as at a tipping point for extinction, having lost half of their population in the last 50 years, and on a trajectory to lose another 50% in the next 50 years if nothing changes. I did not find a conservation plan in force for the bird in our area; however, projects to protect and restore area wetlands, such as the expansion of the Crow's Nest Natural Area, are helpful and should be encouraged and supported.
Habitat is important to the King Rail’s survival, because it is particular about the water level of its breeding area, often changing areas when the water levels shift, suggesting that climate change may also influence its dwindling population. The male King Rail constructs the nest in marsh vegetation, generally seeking areas with nearby plants such as sturdy bulrush, cattails, maiden cane, giant cutgrass, sawgrass, or black needlerush, which offer cover. The male often builds a sample nest as well as other nests to shelter the chicks once they have hatched. The simple round platforms sit above the water, made from wet, decaying vegetation and dead, dry grasses, sedges, or rushes. The nest often has a leaf canopy that hides it, protecting the eggs and chicks from flying predators.
The King Rail is omnivorous, eating crayfish, fiddler crabs, small clams, fish, and frogs, as well as aquatic insects, fruits, acorns, and seeds of aquatic plants, including rice. Rails typically wade though the shallow marsh looking for prey and capturing them with their long bill. If they find food on land they often will go to the water and dunk their prey before eating. They swallow most food whole, but some they will dismember first, such as large crawfish. King Rails regurgitate indigestible parts of their food in pellets, like owls and some other birds.
Clapper Rail, Shayna Marchese/Audubon Photography Awards
King Rail, Seth Honig
I was surprised, given its vulnerability, that King Rail hunting is not prohibited in Virginia, as it is in Pennsylvania, although it is very limited. The King Rail is not officially considered a migratory game bird due to its limited migration behavior, but the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources sets a one per day bag limit on the King Rail. Fairfax County’s migratory gamebird biologist suggests that low limit is meant to protect those hunting for Clapper Rails from a violation from an accidental take of a King Rail. Clapper Rails and King Rails are similar in size and shape (see photo), but they generally prefer different habitat.
The King Rail has been spotted in the following local parks: Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Woodbridge Veterans Memorial Park, Aquia Landing Park, Crow’s Nest Natural Area, and Dyke Marsh Wildlife Preserve. Spotting this elusive bird is challenging for the novice. Your best chance may be to look for them foraging along the edge of the marsh in the early morning or at dusk.