ajohn

After doing some research today I now believe the Water Rail in gei wai 21 on Saturday (seen by Graham on Sunday) is actually a 'Western' Water Rail, which has not previously been recorded in HK.

Although this is treated as the same species by most authorities, there is a suggestion in the recent Rasmussen book (Birds of South Asia) that it should be treated as a separate species.

Key ID features are the white undertail and lack of a brown 'mask' on the face but there are other supporting features (including the colour of the underparts, prominence of streaking on the upperparts and bill structure/colour).

If anyone has any photos of this bird (even 'record' shots) it would be very useful to post them or send me a private message.

John

ajohn

Well done getting a photo of this bird Mike - I understand photography has been very difficult because the bird is only visible in the late afternoon and is usually in the reeds!

The key features to ID this bird as a 'Western' Water Rail are: the undertail coverts are white (not barred), there is no brown mask, the upperparts are not so heavily streaked, there is no brown on the breast, etc.

All previous HK records are thought to belong to the 'Eastern' (sub-)species indicus, so this is potentially a first for HK. Having seen the bird again earlier this week, and looking at photos of other birds, I am increasingly convinced that the 'split' is valid.

The bird has only recently been seen in late afternoon (4.00 onwards) because very high tides overnight do not drain until this time - there is then a relatively short window of opportunity before the gei wai starts to refill! Hopefully the tides will be more suitable in coming days and the bird will stay in the area.