Date: 7/8/26 9:07 am From: Dick Hughes <hughesful...> Subject: Re: [MASSBIRD] Rail Summer
Thanks Robert, for a lovely essay. I’ve missed MASSBIRD, and I especially
appreciate the forum it provides for the many writers who grace its digital
pages.
Cheers,
Dick Hughes
On Mon, Jul 6, 2026 at 9:25 PM Robert Ross <plumisl...> wrote:
> Welcome back, Massbirders! (Thanks, Haynes, for alerting me and all).
>
> Though the species has been heard in the Great Marsh for several
> years, few have seen a king rail on or near Plum Island. This summer
> changed that result.
>
> A king rail has been hanging around the maintenance area, which
> those-in-the-know call The Wardens, for well over a month now. Many
> have seen, photographed, and reported it. The bird has been very
> cooperative and seems not to mind a throng of photographers nearby.
>
> It has been seen out in the open, moving from the small sound inlet
> behind the pines at the back of the area, to the small, isolated
> interior pond near the large storage shed. To get there, it has to
> cross a gavel patch, and it's on this patch where several lucky
> birders have seen it in a rare view for this species.
>
> It struts down the dike path, too. It does not seem to be in a hurry
> to get away from view. It calls continuously, creating fascination and
> wonder over whether it has a mate, which seems more and more unlikely.
> As of this writing, it is still being reported.
>
> Adding to this wonderful rarity, many have also reported hearing a
> clapper rail somewhere near the kayak launch, right near the Refuge
> entrance gate. Many more have reported hearing it than have reported
> seeing it, but a lucky few have posted photos.
>
> Though it is apparently controversial to report a bird only heard on
> an eBird checklist, or to report only because it is picked up by
> Merlin, it's not my place to judge. I, too, have a rail I have only
> heard.
>
> For three years now, Merlin has consistently picked up a Virginia rail
> in a small wetland across from my house. The call comes early in the
> AM, between 6-7 AM, though it might start earlier. The app does not
> pick it up often after seven.
>
> I have never spotted the bird. The wetland is packed with phragmites,
> and by mid-summer, small bushes and bordering trees almost hide it
> from the road. It is on a busy street. There is no way to get up high
> enough to look into the wetland, and even if possible, there's still
> the issue of the dense reeds.
>
> But this is something I love about Merlin. There's a Virginia Rail
> somewhere within a stone's throw of my house. I might be the only one
> who knows. It's been coming back to this spot for years now. I assume
> it is doing so because it has had a successful brood. There are two
> rivers within a short walk, and both offer substantial wetlands, so
> rails may be well established. And, of course, there's no guarantee
> the rail Merlin has been picking up for these years is the same bird.
>
> I have learned to distinguish the Virginia rail's calls from a clapper
> or a king rail. I no longer rely only on Merlin, and I often hear the
> bird without using the app to confirm it.
>
> I do, though, like the idea the rail is near. I like it nesting so
> close. If I never see it, I won't be disappointed. This feels
> right--that I would hear it but never see it, for a rail.
>
> Virginia rails are not rare on Plum Island. I can't say for sure they
> are rare in Newbury, either. Clappers appear more so, and though I
> have heard one more than once near the headwaters of the Parker River,
> I am waiting to see one first before reporting it. No luck yet, though
> I have a much better chance of seeing one if it is near the river, as
> the view is wide and accessible.
>
> For now, though, I am enjoying getting up early, grabbing a cup of
> tea, and letting the dogs run around in the front yard as I listen for
> the rail across the road. It's probably never seen me, either.
>
> Robert Ross
> <plumisl...>
> Newbury, MA
>
