Despite being difficult to see, much alone find, this bird in deep grasses has extremely beautiful plumage.
The ocellated crake (Micropygia schomburgkii) is an olive-brown crake with unique drop-shaped spots surrounded with a black rim.
The chest is a reddish brown color that fades to white towards the belly.
The legs and eyes are both reddish-brown. The coloration of this bird’s upper parts distinguishes it.
The female, on the other hand, has a more speckled head.
This bird you may find throughout most of Latin America, including Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela.
And a tiny population was recently discovered in Argentina.
The Ocellated Crake favors dry grassland and subtropical or tropical intermittently wet or inundated lowland grassland environments.
These birds hunt on insects such as beetles, stoneflies, grasshoppers, cockroaches.
As well as ants in tall grass or dry to moist ground.
Little is documented about this bird’s breeding habits.
However, it is assumed to be a monogamous species that nests in Costa Rica during the rainy season.
A stunning hue of vivid yellow is complemented by sparkling white eyeliner with equally dazzling speed stripes.
