Slaty-breasted and Buff-banded Rails

[Tirso Paris]

As I was driving around the Agripark area, I chanced upon a Slaty-breasted Rail on the road. It did not really mind so much my arrival, which was quite a surprise. It seemed to be preoccupied with something so I guess it chose to ignore me. Later, it approached the curbside and opened up its wings, apparently not to preen, but to assert itself to a yet unseen and unknown protagonist. It turned out to be a Buff-banded rail with two juveniles which also tried to meet the challenge. Though the Slaty attempted again to drive away the Buff-banded rails, it failed and was eventually booted out of the area, never to come back in the vicinity.

I'm not really sure if I interpreted the ongoing dynamics correctly but it seemed like they were trying to fight over territory. Although they were quite far from in their usual watery habitat, there were abundant cattle manure and other goodies for them to feast on the concrete road. Well, at least they allowed me to capture the brief encounter.

All pictures below were taken using my Canon EOS 7D, EF 100-400mm L IS USM, in natural light and car window support .



Slaty-breasted Rail (Gallirallus striatus albiventer), Los Banos, Laguna
2011-09-22 06:08,1/250 sec, Shutter priority, F 5.6, ISO 1250,400 mm



Slaty-breasted Rail (Gallirallus striatus albiventer), Los Banos, Laguna
2011-09-22 06:11,1/800 sec, Shutter priority, F 6.3, ISO 2500,400 mm



Buff-banded Rail (Gallirallus philippensis), Los Banos, Laguna
2011-09-22 06:11,1/800 sec, Shutter priority, F 6.3, ISO 3200,400 mm



Slaty-breasted Rail (Gallirallus striatus albiventer), Los Banos, Laguna
2011-09-22 06:11,1/800 sec, Shutter priority, F 5.6, ISO 2500,400 mm



Slaty-breasted Rail (Gallirallus striatus albiventer), Los Banos, Laguna
2011-09-22 06:14,1/800 sec, Shutter priority, F 5.6, ISO 2500,400 mm



Buff-banded Rail (Gallirallus philippensis) with 2 juveniles, Los Banos, Laguna
2011-09-22 06:35,1/640 sec, Shutter priority, F 6.3, ISO 1600,400 mm



Buff-banded Rail (Gallirallus philippensis) with 2 juveniles, Los Banos, Laguna
2011-09-22 06:35,1/640 sec, Shutter priority, F 5.6, ISO 1600,400 mm



Buff-banded Rail (Gallirallus philippensis, Juvenile, Los Banos, Laguna
2011-09-22 06:37,1/640 sec, Shutter priority, F 6.3, ISO 1600,400 mm



Buff-banded Rail (Gallirallus philippensis), Los Banos, Laguna
2011-09-22 06:41,1/640 sec, Shutter priority, F 6.3, ISO 1250,400 mm



Buff-banded Rail (Gallirallus philippensis), Los Banos, Laguna
2011-09-22 06:42,1/640 sec, Shutter priority, F 6.3, ISO 640,400 mm



Buff-banded Rail (Gallirallus philippensis), Los Banos, Laguna
2011-09-22 06:42,1/640 sec, Shutter priority, F 6.3, ISO 640,400 mm

[des]

Excellent series! I haven't seen photos of this age of Buff-banded Rails before. All these rails can be quite violent so the Slaty-breasted may have worried that it was gong to be eaten by the 3 Buff-banded.

[mantarey]

Wonderful series Prof. :-)

[Mark Jason Argallon]

very nice! i like the 6th and 7th photos.

[Ely Teehankee]

Very interesting encounter between the rails but more important for the photographer to have these kind of pictures. I am sure you are happy with the event. Well done Tirso & Mabuhay.

[fred serrano]

excellent! and yes, in terms of density and population, the buff-banded do outnumber the slaty-breasted in the area. i also think it is the harvesting activity in the fields, the hybrid rice plots, that has deprived them of the usual cover. the buff-banded seem to have a bumper harvest of juveniles this season.

[des]

Generally I think Slaty-breasted are much more furtive, while Buff-banded often come out of cover. Slaty-breasted are also very popular with trappers as I understand they are good to eat.

[Tirso Paris]

Oct 13, 2011 16:20:30 GMT des said:

Excellent series! I haven't seen photos of this age of Buff-banded Rails before. All these rails can be quite violent so the Slaty-breasted may have worried that it was gong to be eaten by the 3 Buff-banded.

Thank you Des. Your guess is plausible but I've only seen them attacking furiously cow dungs, perhaps for worms. I just wonder if they fight each other to death.

[Tirso Paris]

Oct 14, 2011 0:18:29 GMT @mantarey said:

Wonderful series Prof. :-)

Thanks Rey. I appreciate your kind comment.

[Tirso Paris]

Oct 14, 2011 4:46:17 GMT Mark Jason Argallon said:

very nice! i like the 6th and 7th photos.

Thanks Mark! Personally, I also like the images. It's amazing how they the juveniles react similarly as the adult to what is going on around them.

[Tirso Paris]

Oct 14, 2011 10:52:34 GMT Ely Teehankee said:

Very interesting encounter between the rails but more important for the photographer to have these kind of pictures. I am sure you are happy with the event. Well done Tirso & Mabuhay.

Thanks a lot Ely! It's not often that you see a Slaty-breasted rail in the open and it was a rare opportunity to photograph them at less than eight meters. The encounter with the Buff-banded rails was a indeed bonus, so yes I was quite happy.

[Tirso Paris]

Oct 14, 2011 13:22:30 GMT fred serrano said:

excellent! and yes, in terms of density and population, the buff-banded do outnumber the slaty-breasted in the area. i also think it is the harvesting activity in the fields, the hybrid rice plots, that has deprived them of the usual cover. the buff-banded seem to have a bumper harvest of juveniles this season.

Thanks a lot Usec Fred! Indeed we have observed them to be in good numbers in between paddy fields earlier. Now with no usual cover, they must be looking for alternatives, including the bushes near concrete roads.

[Tirso Paris]

Oct 15, 2011 9:10:30 GMT des said:

Generally I think Slaty-breasted are much more furtive, while Buff-banded often come out of cover. Slaty-breasted are also very popular with trappers as I understand they are good to eat.

Thanks a lot Des for the additional info. Slaty means the gray color of slate or granite but I often associate it with "stealthy" which is my impression of the bird.

[Adri Constantino]

suuuper series prof tirso! great documentation!

[Lydia Robledo]

Nice, nice... all excellently captured. I enjoyed scrolling up and down, repeatedly . Prof. Tirso... have you noticed any butterflies? I will be in Makiling with 2 Singaporean friends on the 25th for serious butterfly watching in Makiling.

des.. "nice to eat", hala, Thanksgiving is a month and a week away... quick, quick, delete the comment.. he, he lyd

[Tirso Paris]

Oct 15, 2011 14:19:07 GMT Adri Constantino said:

suuuper series prof tirso! great documentation!

Thanks a lot Adri!

[Tirso Paris]

Oct 15, 2011 15:28:12 GMT Lydia Robledo said:

Nice, nice... all excellently captured. I enjoyed scrolling up and down, repeatedly . Prof. Tirso... have you noticed any butterflies? I will be in Makiling with 2 Singaporean friends on the 25th for serious butterfly watching in Makiling.

Thank you very much Lyds. I'm now noticing some butterflies in my garden but not as many as last year although I have the same host plants. It could be due to the series of typhoons which hit us this past few months. I think I'll be here on the 25th. Hope to see you then.