Vermont Rare Bird Reports 2024

John Peckham (checklist S158063864) and Avery Fish took pictures of (presumably) this same bird in this same location on 1/4/2024.

Temperature in the high 20's F with a few inches of snow on the ground.

Swarovski binoculars 12 X42

I have seen and heard Virginia Rails numerous times over my over 50 years of Vermont bird watching. I started submitting to ebird in the 2020's and visit Colchester Pond often. Specifically, I"ve seen and heard Virginia Rail in this marshy area a number of times.During the spring and early summer they will readily respond to a call, though usually I'm content to know they are there and will report them on ebird only if I hear them vocalizing on their own. On at least two occasions, I"ve heard vocalizations that are usually associated with adults communicating with their young. I've also, on at least one occasion, seen a quite young Virginia Rail at another location on the pond.

Marshy area of cattails at the southern end of Colchester pond. There is a 3 ft wide cement culvert that originates from a beaver pond that enters into the marsh at this location, that created a channel of open, unfrozen water. There is also a few piles of brush 2 or 3 feet high thrown into the marsh near the culvert, creating multiple places to hide near running water in an otherwise frozen marsh.

The bird was steathly moving in various places within the brush piles. I have seen a mink in this same area and the bird perhaps had more than just me to worry about.

No vocalizations. I tried playing a recording to see if I could obtain a documentable response - no success.

Here is a copy of my observations sent in with the ebird checklist for January 2, 2024. I wrote this soon after the sighting. "The binoculars first presented a grayish head with a long (longer than the rest of the head), down turned bill of an orange hue and a light stripe over the eye. The light reddish brown chest and chicken-like body then followed with a slightly darker mottled back. There was also the characteristic dark and whitish area on the back flank and longish legs.

Quite barrel chested with a thick neck and thick legs, maybe the same length to the legs as height of the body.

Head and neck around the same thickness. Pronounced darker gray auricle and lighter gray above and behind the eye with a pronounced stripe leading from the bill to half way over the reddish eye.

Bill was a bit longer than the head and down turned with an orange-ish lower mandible Legs and feet had an orange-ish hue.

mottled dark and light

reddish brown chest and a distinct dark flank with light colored striations.

The orangish down turned bill, the long thick legs, the stocky body and location didn't bring to mind any other species.