Nebraskaland

14 Nebraskaland • November 2021 IN THE FIELD By Joel G. Jorgensen THREATENED AND ENDANGERED: THE BLACK RAIL Most people have heard of the fabled Sasquatch, but far fewer are familiar with the mythical creature known as the black rail. The former serves as a useful comparison for the latter, not with respect to its size or validity of its existence, but in its trademark elusiveness. The sparrow-sized black rail inhabits dense marsh vegetation, usually stays out of sight and vocalizes infrequently. Many sightings of black rail are brief glimpses of a small, dark bird lasting not more than a second. The brevity of observations and its similarity to other species, such as the far more common Sora, often leaves an observer trying to make sense of what they encountered. Few observations are supported by hard evidence such as photographs or audio recordings. Thus, this little marsh dweller almost becomes a creature of dreams and folklore, like that big hairy hominin, rather than one that can be experienced in the here and now. The eastern black rail (Laterallus jamaicensis) inhabits the eastern and central United States and was federally listed as threatened in late 2020. As a result, and because of how Nebraska's endangered species law is structured, the species automatically became state listed at the same time. However, the black rail is not known to regularly occur in the state and, in fact, there are only two widely accepted records in the past 40 years. Its primary range is to the south and east along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. There are a handful of other reports from Nebraska since the late 1800s, some credible and others not so much. So is the black rail more common in Nebraska than is known? Has the species been looked for? Since 2013, biologists with the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and its partners have conducted more than 1,300 call playback surveys where trained observers play the black rail's call in the hopes this will elicit a response from a real bird. Out of all those surveys, only one black rail was detected. Thus, it appears the black rail truly is a very rare bird in the state and only occurs as a rare migrant or vagrant. The black rail is a species that has declined throughout its range because of many factors, but like many other marsh birds, wetland loss and alteration is a major driver. More than 90 percent of all breeding season records are from coastal areas, so its future and fate likely will be determined by the effectiveness of conservation efforts in those areas. With small localized breeding populations as close to Nebraska as central Kansas and southeastern Colorado, there is always the possibility a black rail could be seen or heard at a Nebraska wetland. However, it happens so infrequently its presence here remains something almost of legend and superstition. Just like Sasquatch, having a camera or an audio recorder handy and acquiring indisputable proof will go a long way in convincing the skeptics if you encounter one. Joel G. Jorgensen is the nongame bird program manager for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. The elusive and seldom seen, eastern black rail. WILLIAMBURT.COM

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