Habitat preferences of breeding Water RailRallus aquaticus

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

“…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.…”

“…With the present study, we have provided a comparative analysis of two species belonging to this family with different degrees of ecological specialization. Water Rail in our study area represent a model particularly suited to assessing the effects of habitat types and site isolation on the abundance of a target species: it is a habitat specialist species tied to wetlands (Jenkins & Ormerod 2002), which in the study area occur as fragments embedded within an unsuitable landscape matrix (Pedrini et al 2005). Therefore, it is likely that no occupancy of other sites occurred outside the wetland network we investigated.…”

“…Basing our study on species with very different degrees of ecological specialization, we hoped to assess the effects of the aforementioned factors on two definitely different biological models; despite the fact that they are rather closely related one to each other and have similar size, they have different niche breadths (Cramp & Simmons 1980, Pedrini et al 2005) and could potentially show somewhat different responses to variation in habitat, area, isolation and presence of potentially interacting species. Water Rail is a typical inhabitant of well-vegetated wetlands, usually requiring flooded reed-beds, some clearings with open water, and access to shallow water or muddy surfaces (Jenkins & Ormerod 2002); it can be considered a wetland specialist, unable to occupy successfully other habitats in the landscape matrix within which wetlands are interspersed. Moorhen is a generalist species, inhabiting all kind of habitats providing access to water and patches of vegetation (Cramp & Simmons 1980, Brambilla & Rubolini 2003, and also occurs outside 'true' wetland sites (Pedrini et al 2005).…”

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

“…Detailed quantitative descriptions about these subjects are scarce both for Water Rail (Jenkins & Ormerod 2002, De Kroon & Mommers 2002, as well as for other rail species (Sayre & Rundle 1984, Johnson & Dinsmore 1986, Reid 1989.…”

Temporal Pattern of Vocal Activity of the Water RailRallus aquaticusand the Little CrakePorzana parvain the Breeding Season

“…Both species are poorly studied, because they are secretive and their habitat is difficult to penetrate (but see Flegg & Glue 1973, Musil 1993, Jenkins et al 1995, Andreas 1996, Frädrich 1998, Jenkins 1999, Jenkins & Ormerod 2002, De Kroon 2004. Water Rail and Little Crake have a repertoire of different types of vocalization (Cramp & Simmons 1980, De Kroon 1982.…”