Natural History Wanderings

The American Bird Conservancy reported that

An extremely rare and incredibly reclusive bird—the Junin Rail—was seen and photographed near a high Andean Lake this past Sunday, February 26, 2012.

The Junin Rail is notable for its bright red eyes and cryptically-patterned plumage. It relies on hiding motionless in dense reeds to avoid predators and so can be very difficult to see, even at close quarters. It is similar to the North American Black Rail (with which it is sometimes considered conspecific), but has a different call and subtly different plumage characters. The Black Rail itself is often considered North America’s most difficult bird to find.

Junin Rail by Mike Parr

The bird was found by Cesar Donato Zevallos Bashualdo a conservationist who works with the Peruvian conservation group ECOAN, then hand-captured by leading British ornithologist and bird bander Stephen Rumsey. It was photographed by ABC’s Mike Parr. The ECOAN/ABC team is working in the Junin region to develop a conservation program with local community members.

Read full press release and see photos  at:  Holy Grail of Birding Seen, Photographed, Near Remote Peruvian Mountain Lake.