Water Rail - 1949

Rallus aquaticus aquaticus

A passage migrant on the islands, having been recorded even from the Smalls lighthouse several times.  Has bred on Skokholm, and H.A.Gilbert records that it has bred in the marsh between Tenby and Penally.  Common in winter, from late August onwards.  Mathew conisdered it bred, but gave no definite evidence; he described it as numerous in winter, and not less numerous in summer!

R.M.Lockley, G.C.S.Ingram, H.M.Salmon, 1949, The Birds of Pembrokeshire, The West Wales Field Society 

Water Rail - 2003-07

This slender, long-billed crake with its cryptic brown and grey plumage broken by dark streaks, is more often heard than seen. It inhabits mainly fresh water lowland, boggy places with dense plant growth, making it difficult to see and providing concealment for its nest.

Bearing in mind how difficult detection of this species is, the survey results must be regarded as representing a minimum presence. The most striking difference in distribution change is the absence in the St David’s area indicated by the latter survey. There has been no obvious visible change, or loss or fragmentation, in the relevant habitat during the interval between surveys, suggesting apparent absence may not have been real. In that case it could be concluded that there has been no change in the county population level of about 20 pairs. A specialist census concentrating on this species might well be revealing and could lead to a reassessment of its breeding status in Pembrokeshire.

Graham Rees

  

Fieldwork 2003-07 (based on 490 tetrads)

Red = breeding confirmed = 1

Orange = breeding probable = 5

Yellow = breeding possible = 10

Total tetrads in which registered = 16 (3.3%)

Water Rail - 1994

Winter visitor and scarce breeder

Bogs, moors and rough ground were much more widespread in Pembrokeshire during the nineteenth century when Mathew (1894) considered the Water Rail to be a common resident. By 1936 Lloyd only found them during the winter.  Lockley et al (1949) stated that the Water Rail was common in winter, from late August onwards, and knew of only two recent breeding records, on Skomer and Tenby Marsh.   

Breeding was suspected at Pointz Castle in 1968, proved at Dowrog during the period 1967-1971 and at Cwm yr Eglwys in 1980. Breeding was both proven and suspected during the Breeding Birds Survey of 1984-1988, as shown on the map, suggesting a minimum population of 20 pairs. It is difficult to know whether this indicates an increase or is the result of more observer effort.

Water Rails remain widespread during the winter. They arrive from August but principally in late September and October, and most have departed again by April.  They have been noted at the Smalls and South Bishop lighthouses during arrival time.

Fieldwork 1984-88 (based on 478 tetrads)

Red = breeding confirmed = 2

Orange = breeding probable = 6

Yellow = breeding possible = 12

Total tetrads in which registered = 20 (4.2%)

Donovan J.W. & Rees G.H (1994), Birds of Pembrokeshire

Water Rail - 1980s winter

The BTO winter atlas showed that Water rails were present in the majority of 10km squares during the winters of 1981-82, 1982-82 and 1983-84.

The darker the colour, the higher the relative total count for each 10km square.  The darkest blue represents over 3 birds seen in a day.

To a large degree the plotted distribution follows the degree of observer effort.

Graham Rees 

Water Rail - 1894

Species account from M Mathew, 1894, "The Birds of Pembrokeshire and its islands"

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