Blackish Rail

Blackish Rail

Pardirallus nigricans

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Iguaçu National Park

In 3 days ~40% in a week ~60%

489 Verified sightings at Iguaçu National Park From 2019 to 2026
1,269 In all 8 parks
October Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Blackish Rail

The blackish rail (Pardirallus nigricans) is a species of bird in the subfamily Rallinae of the rail, crake, and coot family Rallidae. It is found in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Venezuela, and possibly Bolivia.

The blackish rail has previously been placed in the large genus Rallus, and also in genus Orygonax with the plumbeous rail (Pardirallus sanguinolentus). Some authors propose that the blackish and plumbeous rails are conspecific, and they do form a superspecies.

The blackish rail is 27 to 29 cm (11 to 11 in) long; one male weighed 217 g (7.7 oz). The sexes are alike. They have a long yellow-green bill and pinkish legs. The nominate subspecies has unmarked dark brown upperparts, a white chin and throat, and dark gray face and underparts. P. n. caucae is larger than the nominate and has a larger and whiter throat patch and paler underparts especially at the vent.

The blackish rail has a disjunct distribution. The nominate subspecies has two populations. One is found from northeastern Brazil... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:06

Argentina · 2025

© Marcos E. Sosa · XC1065682 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Duet0:31

Brazil · 2025

© rafarrinho · XC1064763 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song1:30

Brazil · 2025

© Marcelo J Feliti · XC1033127 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Iguazú National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
2 Iguaçu National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
3 Serra da Canastra National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
4 Serra dos Órgãos National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
5 Chapada Diamantina National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
6 Manu National Park 🇵🇪 Peru
<5%
7 Farallones de Cali National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%
8 Los Nevados National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Curitiba 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
2 São Paulo 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
3 Porto Alegre 🇧🇷 Brazil
~10%
4 Campinas 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
5 Belo Horizonte 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
6 Santos 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
7 Goiânia 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
8 Rio de Janeiro 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
9 Brasilia 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%
10 Maceió 🇧🇷 Brazil
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Blackish Rail in Iguaçu National Park?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Blackish Rail sighting in Iguaçu National Park on a given day, based on 489 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 91st most-seen of the 346 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Blackish Rail in Iguaçu National Park?

March and October

In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Blackish Rail in Iguaçu National Park on a given day, against about 10% in April–September and November–February, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Blackish Rail?

Between 7 and 10 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Blackish Rail sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Iguaçu National Park the best place to see a Blackish Rail?

Among the best

Of the 8 parks where we can rate Blackish Rail sightings, Iguaçu National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Iguazú National Park (Argentina, about 10%).

Where does the Blackish Rail sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Blackish Rail is recorded against all the birds logged in Iguaçu National Park (489 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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