A Comparison of Two European Breeding Habitats of the Water Rail<i>Rallus aquaticus</i>

Kroon, G. H.

doi:10.3161/068.039.0107

Cited by 15 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 12 publications

(5 reference statements)

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“…Our results confirmed at the landscape scale what has been already found at the local scale for the Water Rail: the key importance of reed-bed habitats and the secondary importance of other herbaceous vegetation, which are likely to substitute reed-bed where it is lacking (Brambilla & Rubolini 2004), have been reported from other studies carried out at small spatial scales and using fine variables measured in the field (Jenkins & Ormerod 2002, Brambilla & Rubolini 2004, De Kroon 2004.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%

The effects of habitat and spatial features of wetland fragments on the abundance of two rallid species with different degrees of habitat specialization

2012

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%

The effects of habitat and spatial features of wetland fragments on the abundance of two rallid species with different degrees of habitat specialization

2012

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“…The water rail Rallus aquaticus remains a poorly studied bird species due to its elusive life and the difficulties to penetrate its habitat (De Kroon 2004;Polak 2005). Based on sequences of three loci (COI, ADH5 and PTPN12), the water rail has been split into two separate species, R. aquaticus and R. indicus, the former occurring from Western Europe to Kazakhstan and the latter in East Asia including Japan.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Limited genetic structure and diversity in the water railRallus aquaticusL., 1758 (Aves: Gruiformes: Rallidae) revealed by mitochondrial DNA analysis

Stermin¹,

David²,

Pripon³

et al. 2014

Italian Journal of Zoology

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A previous, geographically limited study, has found very little genetic structure in the water rail Rallus aquaticus based on cytochrome oxidase I sequences. Adding samples from Romania, Montenegro, Germany and Spain, we investigated whether the new data confirm the picture of genetic homogeneity or if there is more diverse structure, e.g. due to survival in different Pleistocene refuges. Among 75 studied individuals, there were 12 haplotypes, one of them very common, the others differing in only one or two positions. The high haplotype diversity in Kazakhstan suggested that diversification has been ongoing for a longer time than in the other areas, assuming similar substitution rates across the entire species. Only one rare haplotype was shared between Kazakhstan and another region, specifically Romania. All other rare haplotypes had narrow distributions and probably evolved after the range expansion towards the west. Apparently, gene flow has been restricted in the recent past. The Romanian population was genetically intermediate between Kazakhstan and the western populations. The genetic structure of the populations supported a post-glacial out-of-Central-Asia scenario.

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“…Both Little Crake and Water Rail occupy a wide range of freshwater, usually eutrophic wetlands (natural and semi-natural), with fairly tall and dense aquatic vegetation (Cramp 1980, Taylor & Van Perlo 1998. A few recent studies have investigated landscape and spatial determinants of Water Rail occurrence or abundance (Jenkins & Ormerod 2002, Brambilla & Rubolini 2004, Brambilla et al 2012, but small-scale nest-site preferences of both species are poorly known (Schiermann 1929, Kux 1959, De Kroon 2000, De Kroon & Mommers 2002, De Kroon 2004, although water depth at nest sites has been reported to vary between the two species, with Water Rail nesting in shallower places than Little Crake (Bauer 1960). Nevertheless, virtually no study has quantitatively analysed which habitat features are most likely to drive nest-site selection in these two secretive species.…”

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confidence: 99%

Fine-scale selection of nesting habitat in Little CrakePorzana parvaand Water RailRallus aquaticusin small ponds

2014

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Capsule The most important factor determining fine-scale selection of nesting habitat in Little Crake and Water Rail is water depth. Aims To evaluate factors affecting nest-site selection and relative inter-specific differences in two poorly studied Rallidae species, the Little Crake and Water Rail. Methods Habitat variables describing water depth, water cover, as well as vegetation type and structure were measured within 3-m radius plots around birds' nests and random points, located in small ponds scattered within a largely cultivated landscape in northeastern Poland. Descriptive statistics and multiadaptive regression splines were used to describe nesting habitat and to model nest-site selection in the study species. Results Little Crake nested in sites with deeper water and lower percentage of vegetation cover than Water Rail. Both species chose nest sites according to water depth (probability of Little Crake nests occurrence was the highest around 40 cm and of Water Rail below 12 cm) and vegetation stage in which nests were build (old vegetation was preferred). Little Crake nests were also associated with vegetation height lower than 1.5 m and high percentage cover of old vegetation within a 3-m radius around nests, whereas Water Rail preferred Carex spp. and Juncus effusus for nesting. Conclusion For both species, water depth was the main driver of nest-site selection, followed by vegetation traits. Water depth was also the variable most important in discriminating between the nesting sites of the two species. The different patterns of habitat selection showed by the two species are likely to be due to different morphology and nest characteristics, and are probably driven by the need to maximize both nest and adult safety.

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A Comparison of Two European Breeding Habitats of the Water RailRallus aquaticus

Cited by 15 publications

References 12 publications

The effects of habitat and spatial features of wetland fragments on the abundance of two rallid species with different degrees of habitat specialization

The effects of habitat and spatial features of wetland fragments on the abundance of two rallid species with different degrees of habitat specialization

Limited genetic structure and diversity in the water railRallus aquaticusL., 1758 (Aves: Gruiformes: Rallidae) revealed by mitochondrial DNA analysis

Fine-scale selection of nesting habitat in Little CrakePorzana parvaand Water RailRallus aquaticusin small ponds

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