? California Clapper Rail
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Gruiformes Family: Rallidae Genus: Rallus Species: R. longirostris Subspecies: R. l. obsoletus
Trinomial name
Rallus longirostris obsoletus Ridgway, 1874

The California Clapper Rail (Rallus longirostris obsoletus) is an endangered subspecies of the Clapper Rail (R. longirostris). It is found principally in California's San Francisco Bay, and also in Monterey Bay and Morro Bay. A member of the rail family, Rallidae, it is a chicken-sized bird that rarely flies. Image File history File links Raildumbartrazorback. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms (as opposed to folk taxonomy). ... Phyla Subregnum Parazoa Porifera (sponges) Subregnum Agnotozoa Placozoa (trichoplax) Orthonectida (orthonectids) Rhombozoa (dicyemids) Subregnum Eumetazoa Radiata (unranked) (radial symmetry) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria (coral, jellyfish, anemones) Bilateria (unranked) (bilateral symmetry) Acoelomorpha (basal) Orthonectida (parasitic to flatworms, echinoderms, etc. ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicatas Ascidiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Orders Many - see section below. ... Families †Gastornithidae Aramidae Psophiidae Rallidae Heliornithidae Rhynochetidae †Aptornithidae Eurypigidae Cariamidae Otidae Gruidae †Phorusrhacidae The diverse order Gruiformes contains about 12 bird families with, on first sight, little in common. ... Genera Sarothrura Himantornis Canirallus Coturnicops Micropygia Rallina Anurolimnas Laterallus Nesoclopeus Gallirallus Rallus Lewinia Dryolimnas Crex Rougetius Aramidopsis Atlantisia Aramides Amaurolimnas Gymnocrex Amaurornis Porzana Aenigmatolimnas Cyanolimnas Neocrex Pardirallus Eulabeornis Habroptila Megacrex Gallicrex Porphyrio Gallinula Fulica The family Rallidae is a large group of small to medium-sized birds which includes the... Binomial name Rallus longirostris Boddaert, 1783 The Clapper Rail (Rallus longirostris) is a member of the rail family, Rallidae. ... Trinomial nomenclature is a taxonomic naming system that extends the standard system of binomial nomenclature by adding a third taxon. ... Robert Ridgway. ... The endangered Sea Otter An endangered species is a population of organisms (usually a taxonomic species), which is either (a) so few in number or (b) threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters that it is at risk of becoming extinct. ... In zoology, as in other branches of biology, subspecies is the rank immediately subordinate to a species. ... Binomial name Rallus longirostris Boddaert, 1783 The Clapper Rail (Rallus longirostris) is a member of the rail family, Rallidae. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq. ... San Francisco Bay, San Pablo Bay, and the Golden Gate The San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining of approximately forty percent of California, flowing in Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean. ... Monterey Bay is a bay of the Pacific Ocean, on the coast of California, south of San Francisco. ... Morro Bay Docks with Morro Rock in the background. ... Genera Sarothrura Himantornis Canirallus Coturnicops Micropygia Rallina Anurolimnas Laterallus Nesoclopeus Gallirallus Rallus Lewinia Dryolimnas Crex Rougetius Aramidopsis Atlantisia Aramides Amaurolimnas Gymnocrex Amaurornis Porzana Aenigmatolimnas Cyanolimnas Neocrex Pardirallus Eulabeornis Habroptila Megacrex Gallicrex Porphyrio Gallinula Fulica The family Rallidae is a large group of small to medium-sized birds which includes the... Trinomial name Gallus gallus domesticus A chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) is a type of domesticated bird which is often raised as a type of poultry. ...

Like other subspecies of Clapper Rail, this form has a long, downward curving bill and is grayish brown with a pale chestnut breast and conspicuous whitish rump patch. The population levels of the California Clapper Rail are precariously low due to destruction of its coastal and estuarine marshland habitat by prior land development and shoreline fill. It has year-long, circadian activity and is most vocal nocturnally and crepuscularly^[1]. The circadian rhythm is a name given to the internal body clock that regulates the (roughly) 24 hour cycle of biological processes in animals and plants. ... A nocturnal animal is one that sleeps during the day and is active at night - the opposite of the human (diurnal) schedule. ... Crepuscular is a term used to describe animals that are primarily active during the twilight. ...

Habitat

The California Clapper Rail forages at the upper end of marshes, along the ecotone between mudflat and higher vegetated zones, and in tidal sloughs. Mussels, clams, arthropods, snails, worms and small fish are its preferred foods, which it retrieves by probing and scavenging the surface while walking. The bird will only forage on mudflats or very shallow water where there is taller plant material nearby to provide protection at high tide. At such high tides it may also prey upon mice, and has been known to scavenge dead fish^[2]. An ecotone is a transition area between two adjacent ecological communities (ecosystems). ... This article is about tides in the ocean. ... Slough (pronounced ) is a town and unitary authority (Borough of Slough) in the county of Berkshire in the south of England. ... Subclasses Heterodonta Palaeoheterodonta A mussel is a bivalve mollusk that can be found in lakes, rivers, creeks, intertidal areas, and throughout the ocean. ... Maxima clam (Tridacna maxima) Clams are shelled marine or freshwater mollusks belonging to the class Bivalvia. ... Subphyla and Classes Subphylum Trilobitomorpha Trilobita - trilobites (extinct) Subphylum Chelicerata Arachnida - spiders,scorpions, etc. ... The name snail applies to most members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells. ... A worm is an elongated soft-bodied invertebrate animal. ...

Pickleweed Creek, the upper arm of Richardson Bay looking toward Bothin Marsh

The largest population of California Clapper Rails is in San Francisco Bay, where a total of about 3000 are resident. The photo above right was taken of a California Clapper Rail at the San Francisco Bay perimeter near the Dumbarton Bridge; the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge in the area provides protected habitats for this and other native species. Other frequent sightings of this species around the San Francisco Bay include Bothin Marsh in Mill Valley, Arrowhead Marsh in San Leandro, California, the Palo Alto, California baylands^[3], Charleston Slough in Mountain View, California, Seal Slough in San Mateo and Belmont Slough. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2804x1896, 609 KB) Summary I, M Hogan took this photo and release all rights to wikipedia Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2804x1896, 609 KB) Summary I, M Hogan took this photo and release all rights to wikipedia Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... The Dumbarton Bridge seen from the western terminus. ... Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge is a US National Wildlife Refuge located in San Francisco Bay, California. ... Mill Valley is a city located in Marin County, California. ... San Leandro is a city located in Alameda County, California. ... Official website: http://www. ... For other places in California called “Mountain View”, see Mountain View, California (disambiguation). ... Hillsdale Inn, Honeymoon Suite (demolished 5 April 2001) San Mateo is a city located in San Mateo County, California, USA. It is one of the larger suburbs on the San Francisco Peninsula, located between Burlingame to the north, Foster City to the East, and Belmont to the south. ...

For cover the California Clapper Rail seeks out emergent wetland dominated by pickleweed and cordgrass, or brackish emergent wetland with those two plants plus bullrush. It is not clear whether it requires any source of fresh water. Although not migratory in coastal wetlands, this species disperses juveniles into freshwater wetlands in late August through October. The California Clapper Rail has been observed to forage in or near relatively disturbed areas, leading one to deduce the importance of protecting even ruderal marsh areas; for example this species was seen foraging in a small mudflat area within Seal Slough in San Mateo, three miles from the nearest known breeding area in Belmont^[4]. Species See text. ... The term bulrush (or sometimes as bullrush) typically refers to tall, herbaceous plants that grow in wetlands. ... // Long-distance land bird migration Many species of land migratory birds migrate very long distances, the most common pattern being for birds to breed in the temperate or arctic northern hemisphere and winter in warmer regions, often in the tropics or the temperate zones of the southern hemisphere. ... Juvenile (left) and adult (right) leaves of Stone Pine A juvenile is an individual organism that has not yet reached its adult form, sexual maturity or size. ... Forage is the herbaceous plant material (mainly grasses and legumes) eaten by grazing animals. ... Freshwater marsh in Florida In geography, a marsh is a type of wetland, featuring grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, and other herbaceous plants (possibly with low-growing woody plants) in a context of shallow water. ... Belmont is a city located in San Mateo County, California. ...

Breeding

The California Clapper Rail breeds in the San Francisco Bay from mid-March through July, with peak activity in late June. During this breeding season the bird density was approximately 0.1 to 0.6 individuals per acre; outside of breeding season densities decline to 0.04 to 0.40 individuals per acre^[5]. The twig nest is placed low sometimes among plant roots, and three purple-spotted buff eggs are laid. Eggs are produced in clutches of four to fourteen, with an average yield of 7.6. The incubation period is 18 to 29 days, and the hatching success is 38 percent, notably less than the similar Light-footed Clapper Rail indigenous to southern California. Breeding has several meanings related to procreation: In animal husbandry and in horticulture the selection of stock for propagation and the act of insemination by natural or artificial means is called breeding. ... A clutch of blackbird (Turdus merula) eggs. ... The word incubation (from the Latin incubare, to lie upon) can mean the following: In chemistry or biochemistry, incubation refers to maintaining a system under specific conditions in order to promote a particular reaction. ... Albrecht Dürer, Veronica, 1513. ...

Comparison to some other subspecies

A close relative of the California Clapper Rail is the Light-footed Clapper Rail, Rallus longirostris levipes, a US Federal and California state listed endangered subspecies that ranges from Santa Barbara County to the extreme north of the Mexican coast of the Pacific Ocean. Santa Barbara County is a county located on the Pacific coast of Southern California, in the state of California, just west of Ventura County. ...

Other races of Clapper Rail are found along the east coast of North America, where populations are stable although numbers have declined due to habitat loss, the coasts and some islands of the Caribbean, and across northern South America to eastern Brazil. The Trinidadian subspecies, R. l. pelodromus, is more heavily marked with black above than any of the other Clapper Rail forms^[6]. World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ... West Indian also redirects here. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... Trinidad (Spanish, Trinity) is the largest and most populous of the 23 islands which make up the country of Trinidad and Tobago. ...

References