Slaty breasted wood rail, Atlantic Rainforest, Brazil

The slaty-breasted wood rail (Aramides saracura) is a species of bird in the family Rallidae. It is found in the southern Atlantic Forest of Brazil and eastern Paraguay. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest, and rivers. The Slaty-breasted Wood-Rail is a shy and little-known inhabitant of forest and freshwater marshes in southern Brazil and northern Argentina. Slaty-breasted Wood-Rails have grey on the head and neck that extends to the bird’s belly and chestnut underwing coverts, with a greenish blue bill and yellow-brown legs. A rarely seen bird, little is known about the rail’s breeding or foraging behavior. A nest found 2 m above the ground in thick brush in Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil represents the only nest known nest of the Slaty-breasted Wood-Rails.
Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Shy and infrequently observed; status unknown over most of range, but common in N & E Rio Grande do Sul. A study from Paraná, Brazil, found that this species’ diet consisted of 52.6% Coleoptera, 22% seeds and 25.4% other plant material.