The Virginia Rail is a small, secretive marsh bird with a long, slightly curved reddish bill, gray cheeks, and rufous breast. Its body is laterally flattened, giving rise to the phrase 'thin as a rail,' to squeeze through dense marsh vegetation. Its grunting, pig-like calls are far more often heard than the bird is seen.
Habitat
Freshwater and brackish marshes with dense emergent vegetation
Diet
Aquatic invertebrates, earthworms, snails, and seeds
How common
Common
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