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7

Buff-banded Rail

(Gallirallus philippensis)
Alternate name(s): "Banded Landrail", "Buff-banded Landrail", "Landrail",
"Painted Rail", "Pectoral Rail", "Corn-crake", "Little Tarler Bird"
Aboriginal name(s): Race "mellori": "lerp" [eastern djadjawurrung]; "kooli" (WA)

Size: 28-32 cm
Weight: 150-210 g

Similar
species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description

Click here for a physical description

Taxonomy, classification

See Buff-banded Rail at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species

Click here for information on habitat and range

Sightings

Click here for sighting information

Photos

Race "mellori"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Frontal view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of E. Scott)
[Roseberry Creek Valley, near Toonumbar NP, northern NSW, January 2016]

Frontal view of a Buff-banded Rail looking sideways (photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, December 2015]

Frontal view of a Buff-banded Rail looking sideways (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Tyto Wetlands, Ingham, QLD, September 2020]

Near-frontal view of a Buff-banded Rail shaking itself (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Broadbeach, Gold Coast, QLD, March 2014]

Near-lateral view of a Buff-banded Rail looking sideways (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Moggill Wetlands, Moggill, QLD, December 2022]

Near-lateral view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Moggill Wetlands, Moggill, QLD, December 2022]

Lateral view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Kuranda Wildlife Park near Cairns, QLD, April 2012]

Lateral view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, December 2015]

Lateral view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of V. Collins)
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, October 2020]

Lateral view of a very scruffy-looking, possibly moulting, Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Broadbeach, Gold Coast, QLD, March 2014]

Lateral view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Moggill Wetlands, Moggill, QLD, January 2018]

Lateral view of a Buff-banded Rail swimming near the edge of a lake
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, May 2012]

Near-dorsal view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Moggill Wetlands, Moggill, QLD, December 2022]

Dorsal view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Moggill Wetlands, Moggill, QLD, January 2018]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Adult Buff-banded Rail, right, with juvenile in tow (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Lover's Bay, Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

Juvenile Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Lover's Bay, Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

Adult Buff-banded Rail with two of in total five chicks (photo courtesy of R. Druce)
[Queen Mary Falls, near Killarney, QLD, October 2015]

Race "tounelieri"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Frontal view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Lady Musgrave Island, near Agnes Water, QLD, September 2017]

Near-frontal view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Lady Elliot Island, near Agnes Water, QLD, January 2016]

Lateral view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Lady Elliot Island, near Agnes Water, QLD, January 2016]

Lateral view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of H. Mouritsen)
[One Tree Island, Capricornia Cays NP, QLD, January 2011]

Near-dorsal view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of H. Mouritsen)
[One Tree Island, Capricornia Cays NP, QLD, January 2011]

Dorsal view of a Buff-banded Rail (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Lady Elliot Island, near Agnes Water, QLD, January 2016]

Breeding information

Breeding season: Aug - Dec Eggs: 5 - 8 Incubation period: 18 - 19 days Fledging age: precocial

Depending on geographic latitude and conditions, Buff-banded Rails can in principle breed any time of the year; the period indicated in the table above is the core breeding season. In inland areas their breeding cycle will be dominated by rainfall events, in the tropical North it will be during the dry season.

Nest building: ? Incubation: Female & male Dependent care: Female & male

Nest

"bungobittah", "lar", "malunna", "jindi" [bundjalung] = nest [Aboriginal]

Type: Basket Material: Reeds, grass stems Height above ground: N/A

Buff-banded Rail hatchling (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Lover's Bay, Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

Eggs

"boyanga", "booyanga", "derinya", "dirandil", "koomura", "mirk", "ngampu", "nooluk", "pateena", "pum-pum" = Egg; "dirundirri" = eggs [Aboriginal]; "gawu" = eggs [gamilaraay]

Size: 36 x 28 mm Colour: Creamy, with mid- to dark-brown speckles Shape: Oval

Behaviour

Buff-banded Rails are secretive birds that tend to stay in dense cover, especially in broad daylight. It is often easier to find them in overcast and/or rainy conditions, because in bad light they will occasionally venture into more open country. However, they are not as secretive as Lewin's Rails.

Buff-banded Rails can sometimes appear in unexpected places - this one is foraging by the side of a gravel road
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, December 2015]

It always comes as a surprise to us that aquatic birds also sometimes need to take a bath, here a Buff-banded Rail doing so (photo courtesy of R. Russell)
[Mount Molloy, QLD, November 2012]

Food, Diet

Buff-banded Rails are omnivores that feed primarily on small animals, seeds and plant material. They also scavenge, both for carrion and rubbish.

Lateral view of a Buff-banded Rail with its prey, a beetle (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Moggill Wetlands, Moggill, QLD, December 2022]

This Buff-banded Rail has found a small meal (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Broadbeach, Gold Coast, QLD, March 2014]

Buff-banded Rail with its small prey (photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Fogg Dam CR, NT, August 2021]

Near-lateral view of a Buff-banded Rail digging up small prey from mud under leaf litter
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, August 2023]

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

bubrail_aa_20181105.m4a (ACT) Calling for a mate © AA
bubrail_20221221.mp3 (NW NSW) In-flight call? © MD

More Buff-banded Rail sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

Would you like to contribute photos or sound recordings to this site?
If interested, please CLICK HERE. Credits to contributors are given HERE.