And the story goes ...

12 March 2007: Update 13 March ... Another experienced Birder believes this to be an immature Sora Rail. I did see an adult Sora in the same area. The white undertail is the marking that makes the difference. The Yellow Rail does not have this. Bummer, but it's good to learn.

As I was watching the nesting egrets and herons on the rookery on Alligator Lake in St. Andrews State Park in FL, a gentleman "birder" pointed out this Yellow Rail feeding along the edge of the marsh. He said that he been birding for 45 years and this was only the fourth Yellow Rail that he had ever spotted.

The Audubon has placed this bird on its watch list: "Yellow Rail ranks as one of North America's most elusive and mysterious birds, best known by the insect-like nocturnal ticking song of males. Although there is some sentiment that this species is 'more abundant than encounters would indicate,' there are no data on the population size or trends of Yellow Rail, and the species' biology on its wintering grounds remains largely unknown. The continued draining of wetlands across North America poses a threat to this secretive bird, which breeds in wet meadows and shallow marshes."

Later on, I spotted another Yellow Rail or immature Sora in a different area, and together we spotted a Sora Rail. I guess, I have become an amateur "Birder."

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