text: african crake the african crake ( crex egregia ) is a bird in the rail family that breeds in most of sub - saharan africa away from the arid south and southwest . it is seasonally common in most of its range other than the rainforests and areas that have low annual rainfall . this crake is a partial migrant , moving away from the equator as soon as the rains provide sufficient grass cover to allow it to breed elsewhere . there have been a few records of vagrant birds reaching atlantic islands . this species nests in a wide variety of grassland types , and agricultural land with tall crops may also be used . a smallish crake , the african crake has brown - streaked blackish upperparts , bluish - grey underparts and black - and - white barring on the flanks and belly . it has a stubby red bill , red eyes , and a white line from the bill to above the eye . it is smaller than its closest relative , the corn crake ; that species is also lighter - plumaged , and has an eye stripe . the african crake has a range of calls , the most characteristic being a series of rapid grating notes . it is active during the day , and is territorial on both the breeding and non - breeding grounds ; the male has a threat display , and may fight at territory boundaries . the nest is a shallow cup of grass leaves built in a depression under a grass tussock or small bush . the 3 – 11 eggs start hatching after about 14 days , and the black , downy precocial chicks fledge after four to five weeks . the african crake feeds on a wide range of invertebrates , along with some small frogs and fish , and plant material , especially grass seeds . it may itself be eaten by large birds of prey ; snakes ; or mammals , including humans , and can host parasites . although it may be displaced temporarily by the burning of grassland , or permanently by agriculture , wetland drainage or urbanisation , its large range and population mean that it is not considered to be threatened . taxonomy the rails are a bird family comprising nearly 150 species . although the origins of the group are lost in antiquity , the largest number of species and the most primitive forms are found in the old world , suggesting that this family originated there . the taxonomy of the small crakes is complicated , but the closest relative of the african crake is the corn crake , c. crex , which breeds in europe and asia , but winters in africa . the african crake was first described as egregia by wilhelm peters in 1854 from a specimen collected in mozambique , but the genus name failed to become established . for some time it was placed as the sole member of the genus crecopsis but subsequently moved to crex , created for this species by german naturalist and ornithologist johann matthäus bechstein in 1803 . richard bowdler sharpe considered that the african bird differed sufficiently from the corn crake to have its own genus crecopsis , and later authors sometimes placed it in porzana , based on a resemblance to the ash - throated crake , p. albicollis . structural differences rule out porzana , and the placement in crex is now the most common and best - supported treatment . phylogeny and morphology confirm that the porzana crakes are the closest relatives of the crex genus . the genus name is onomatopoeic , referring to the repetitive grating call of the corn crake , and the species name egregia derives from latin , " outstanding , prominent " . description the african crake is a smallish crake , 20 – 23 cm ( 7 . 9 – 9 . 1 in ) long with a 40 – 42 cm ( 16 – 17 in ) wingspan . the male has blackish upperparts streaked with olive - brown , apart from the nape and hindneck which are plain pale brown ; there is a white streak from the base of the bill to above the eye . the sides of the head , foreneck , throat and breast are bluish - grey , the flight feathers are dark brown , and the flanks and sides of the belly are barred black and white . the eye is red , the bill is reddish , and the legs and feet are light brown or grey . the sexes are similar in appearance , although the female is slightly smaller and duller than the male , with a less contrasting head pattern . immature birds have darker and duller upperparts than the adult , a dark bill , grey eye , and less barring on the underparts . there are no subspecific or other geographical variations in plumage . this crake has a complete moult after breeding , mainly prior to migration . although this species occurs in fairly open habitats , it lacks the pure white undertail used for signalling in open water or gregarious species like the coots and moorhens . the african crake is smaller than the corn crake , which also has darker upperparts , a plain grey face and different underparts barring pattern . in flight , the african species has shorter , blunter wings with a less prominent white leading edge , and deeper wingbeats than its relative . other sympatric crakes are smaller with white markings on the upperparts , different underparts patterns and a shorter bill . the african rail has dark brown upperparts , a long red bill and red legs and feet . voice like other rails , this species has a wide range of vocalisations . the male 's territorial and advertising call is a series of rapid grating notes repeated two or three times a second for several minutes . it is given most often in the breeding season , usually early or late in the day , but sometimes continues after dark or starts before dawn . the male stands upright with his neck extended when advertising , but will also call when chasing intruders on the ground or in flight . both sexes give a sharp , loud kip call as an alarm or during territorial interactions , adapting a similar pose as for the advertising call . once breeding starts , the birds become much quieter , but territorial birds commence the kip call again during the non - breeding season , especially when there is a high density of african crakes in the area . a wheezy is associated with threat displays and copulation ; imitation of this call by a human can bring a rail to within 10 m ( 33 ft ) . newly hatched chicks make a soft call , and older chicks cheep . the rasping advertising call is readily distinguished from the hwitt - hwitt - hwitt of spotted crake , the monotonous clockwork tak - tak - tak - tak - tak of striped crake , or the quick - quick of baillon 's crake . the corn crake is silent in africa . distribution and habitat the african crake occurs throughout sub - saharan africa from senegal east to kenya , and south to kwazulu - natal , south africa , except in arid areas of south and southwest africa where the annual summer rainfall is less than 300 mm ( 12 in ) . it is widespread and locally common in most of its range , apart from the rainforests and the drier regions . nearly all the south africa population of about 8 , 000 birds occur in kwazulu - natal and the former transvaal province , and much good habitat is protected in the kruger national park and wetland park . this crake is only a vagrant to southern mauritania , southwest niger , lesotho , south africa 's northern and eastern cape province and north west province , and southern botswana . further afield , it is rare on bioko island ( equatorial guinea ) , and there have been two records each for sao tome and tenerife , the canary islands birds being the first records for the western . holocene remains from north africa suggest that the species may have been more widespread when the climate was wetter in what is now the sahara . this crake is a partial migrant , but although it is less skulking than many of its relatives , its movements are complex and poorly studied ; the distribution map is therefore largely hypothetical . it is mainly a wet - season breeder , and many birds move away from the equator as soon as the rains provide sufficient grass cover to allow them to breed elsewhere . southward movement is mainly from november to april , the return north beginning when burning or drought reduces the grass cover again . this species is present throughout the year in some west african countries , and in equatorial regions , but even in those areas numbers vary seasonally due to local movements ; north - south migration has been noted within countries including nigeria , senegal , the gambia , ivory coast and cameroon . migration takes place at night and involves small groups of up to eight birds ; it may be one or two months after the rains begin before the grass is sufficiently high for breeding birds to arrive . even in southern africa , some birds may stay after breeding if enough usable habitat remains . the habitat is predominantly grassland , ranging from wetland edges and seasonal floodlands to savanna , lightly wooded dry grassland , and grassy forest clearings . the crake also frequents maize , rice and cotton crops , derelict farmland and sugarcane plantations close to water . a wide range of grass species are used , with a preferred height of 0 . 3 – 1 m ( 0 . 98 – 3 . 28 ft ) tall but vegetation is acceptable up to 2 m ( 6 . 6 ft ) tall . it normally prefers moister and shorter grassland habitats than does the corn crake , and its breeding territories often contain or are close to thickets or termite mounds . it occurs from sea level to 2 , 000 m ( 6 , 600 ft ) but is rare in the higher altitude grasslands . its grassland habitat is frequently burned in the dry season , forcing the birds to move elsewhere . in an east african study , the average area occupied by one bird was 2 . 6 hectares ( 6 . 4 acres ) when breeding , and 1 . 97 to 2 . 73 ha ( 4 . 9 to 6 . 7 acres ) at other times . the highest densities occur in lush or moist grassland such as the okavango delta . behaviour the african crake is active during the day , especially at dusk , during light rain , or after heavier rain . it is less skulking and easier to flush from cover than other crakes , and is often seen at the edges of roads and tracks . an observer in a vehicle can approach to within 1 m ( 3 . 3 ft ) . when a bird is flushed it normally flies less than 50 m ( 160 ft ) , but new arrivals may occasionally fly twice as far . a flushed crake will frequently land in a wet area or behind a thicket , and crouch on landing . in short grass , it can escape from a dog using its speed and manoeuvrability , running with the body held almost horizontal . it may roost in a depression near grass tussock and it will bathe in puddles . the african crake is territorial on both the breeding and non - breeding grounds ; the male threat display involves the bird standing upright and spreading the feathers of the flanks and belly like a fan to show the barred underparts . he may march towards the intruder , or walk side by side with another displaying male . the female may accompany the male , but with feathers less widely fanned . fighting at territorial boundaries involves the male birds jumping at each other and pecking . paired females will attack other females in the territory , especially if the male has shown an interest in them . breeding breeding behavior commences with a courtship chase with the female running in a crouch , pursued by the male , who adopts a more upright stance and has his neck outstretched . the female may stop and lower her head and tail to allow copulation ; this takes just a few seconds , but may be repeated several times in an hour . the nest is a shallow cup of grass leaves , sometimes with a loose canopy , built in a depression and hidden under a grass tussock or small bush ; it may be on dry ground or slightly raised above standing water , or occasionally floating . the nest is about 20 cm ( 7 . 9 in ) across with the internal cup 2 – 5 cm ( 0 . 79 – 1 . 97 in ) deep , and 11 – 12 cm ( 4 . 3 – 4 . 7 in ) wide . the clutch size is from 3 to 11 pink - coloured eggs ; the first is often laid when the nest is little more than a pad of grass , and a further egg is laid on each subsequent day . both sexes incubate , and the eggs start hatching after about 14 days ; all hatch with 48 hours despite the extended laying period . the black , downy precocial chicks soon leave the nest but are fed and protected by the parents . fledging occurs after four to five weeks , and the young can fly before they are fully grown . it is not known whether a second brood is raised . feeding the african crake feeds on invertebrates including earthworms , gastropods , molluscs and the adults and larvae of insects , especially termites , ants , beetles and grasshoppers . vertebrate prey such as small frogs or fish may also be taken . plant material is eaten , especially grass seeds , but also green shoots , leaves and other seeds . the crake searches for food both within vegetation and in the open , picking insects and seeds from the ground , turning over leaf litter , or digging with its bill in soft or very dry ground . it will chase faster moving prey , reach up to take food from plants , and wade to pluck food items from the water . crop plants such as rice , maize and peas may sometimes be eaten , but this bird is not an agricultural pest species . it forages singly , in pairs or in family groups , sometimes in association with other grassland birds such as great snipes , blue quails and corn crakes . chicks are fed mainly on animal food . as with other rails , grit is swallowed to help break up food in the stomach . predators and parasites predators include the leopard , serval , cats , the black - headed heron , dark chanting goshawk , african hawk - eagle and wahlberg 's eagle . in south africa , newly hatched chicks were taken by a . if surprised , an african crake will leap vertically into the air before running away , a tactic believed to help it to evade snakes or terrestrial mammals . parasites of this species include ticks of the family , and a feather mite , elongatus , of the subspecies m. e. curtus . the nominate form of the mite occurs thousands of kilometres away in new caledonia . status the african crake has a huge breeding range estimated at 11 , 700 , 000 km2 ( 4 , 500 , 000 mi2 ) . its population is unknown , but it is common in most of its range , and its numbers appear to be stable . it is therefore classed as least concern on the iucn red list . overgrazing , agriculture and the loss of wetland and moist grassland have reduced the availability of suitable habitat in many areas , such as some parts of the southern kwazulu - natal coast which have been urbanised or planted with sugarcane . in other areas , grassland may have increased locally in recent years as woodland is cleared . this crake is considered to be good eating , and is killed for food in some regions . despite these adverse factors , it appears to be under no real threat . although most rails in the old world are covered by the agreement on the conservation of african - eurasian migratory waterbirds ( aewa ) , the african crake is not listed even in kenya , where it is considered " near - threatened " . like its relative , the corn crake , it is too terrestrial to be classed as a wetland species .