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Spotted Crake Porzana porzana   [Linnaeus, 1766]
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   Page updated:16-January-2013
Order: Gruiformes Family: Rallidae
BTO Codes: AK, SPOCR EURING No: 4080
Number in Britain: 40 males (Summer)
Conservation Status:
UK: AMBER
European: Not a species of concern
Global: (Details)
Links to: Images   Videos   Sound  
Status in UK: (A)  Migrant Breeder, Passage Visitor
Subspecies: Monotypic
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Length: 23 cm Wingspan: 40 cm Weight: M/F: 90 g    
Scientific name from: Italian (Venetian) name sporzana for smaller rails
World Distribution: BREEDS: w Europe to c Asia, WINTERS: Mediterranean south to s Africa & east to Thailand
Habitat: Swamps & marsh
Diet: Small aquatic invertebrates, parts of aquatic plants
TitBit: A bird of shallow sedge fens, its call (a whip like 'hooid') can be heard as much as 2 km away, and is delivered in bursts at a rate of up to 90 a minute.  

Population and Distribution

Population Trend: No population trend available
Distribution: Atlas Maps   
British Population Size:
    Summer: 30 to 50 males in 2005-09
    Passage: 58 individuals
    First Record: 1766 [Fossil evidence from Ipswichian (last) interglacial, c. 125,000 yr ago]
    Latest Survey: Stroud, D. et al. (2012) British Birds 105:197-220
    Conservation Status: AMBER because Small Breeding Population,
   Previous Assessments: 2002-2007 AMBER     1996-2001 AMBER  
   Races of Concern:
Habitat Occupancy (in the Breeding Season):
    No habitat data from BBS
European Population Size:
    Summer: 70 to 110 thousand pairs
Population Assesment from Birds in Europe
Distribution in Europe mapped by the EBCC Atlas
Listed on the Appendices/Schedules of: WCA(I), WBD(I), Bern(III), Bonn(II), AEWA
Survey Results: Results from BirdTrack

Breeding and Survival
Egg Size: 34 x 24 mm Egg Weight: 10.9 g (of which 7 % is shell)
Number of Nest Records: 0
Clutch Size: 10 - 12 eggs
Incubation: 18- 19 days   by the: Male + Female
Fledging: 43 - 56days as: Precocial, downy
First Clutches Laid: Unavailable
Number of Broods: (1)2
Number Ringed: Annual Totals
Adult Survival: No data
Juvenile Survival: No data
Age at First Breeding: 1 year Typical Lifespan: No data
Maximum Recorded Age: 2 years 0 months 26 days (set in 2002)
Read a summary of Ringing Recoveries

Biometrics
Ring Size: D*
Wing Length Adult: Insufficient Data
Juvenile: 122.4 ± 2.9     Range 118.0 - 127.0 mm, (N = 11)
Male: Insufficient Data
Female: Insufficient Data
Weight Adult: Insufficient Data
Juvenile: Insufficient Data
Male: Insufficient Data
Female: Insufficient Data
Seasonal:

Other Names
 
Gaelic: Traon-breac Welsh: Rhegen Fraith
Danish: Plettet rørvagtel Dutch: Porseleinhoen
Finnish: Luhtahuitti French: Marouette ponctuée
German: Tüpfelsumpfhuhn Hungarian: Pettyes vízicsibe
Icelandic: Dílarella Irish: Gearr Breac
Italian: Voltolino Norwegian: Myrrikse
Polish: Kropiatka Portuguese: Franga-d'água-grande
Spanish: Polluela pintoja Swedish: Småfläckig sumphöna

For More Information...
Books and Monographs:
   Taylor, B. & van Perlo, B. 1998 Rails Pica Press, Sussex [598.554 TAY]
See Also:
Find scientific papers on Google Scholar or Scirus by clicking the icon
Wikipedia entry
BirdLife species page
Recent sightings and information from BirdGuides
Read State of the Nations Birds by Chris Mead