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California Clapper Rail
Rallus longirostris obsoletus

Photo © Brent Plater

Home >> Species >> California Clapper Rail

California Clapper Rail
Rallus longirostris obsoletus

The California Clapper Rail is one of three geographically isolated clapper rail subspecies in California.  It is slightly larger and paler than the other two subspecies in the state—the Yuma Clapper Rail and the Light-Footed Clapper Rail—but just as close to the brink of extinction.

The California Clapper Rail is a squat, short-necked, and long-legged bird with a modest streak.  Appearing mostly brownish in color from afar, when seen up-close it becomes apparent that the bird has an intricate  beauty: a rust-colored breast, brown streaks along its olive wings,  and black-and-white bars on its flanks not only make it a wonderful sight, but also help the species hide in the pickleweed and cordgrass that typify its preferred habitats.

Once common in coastal salt marshes in northern and central California, the California Clapper Rail has declined precipitously in both range and number.  Hunters killed thousands of rails each week prior to 1900, and widespread urbanization and diking of wetlands led to massive destruction of the California Clapper Rail’s habitats.  Only 15% of the San Francisco Bay’s original marshland remains today, and much of it is highly fragmented and altered.  Furthermore, nonnative predators such as red foxes, Norway rats, and feral cats prey on clapper rails and their eggs.

In 1970 the California Clapper Rail was listed as an endangered species under the Federal Endangered Species Act.  Since that time the species has seen population increases but also in some years heartbreaking, somewhat unexplained declines. 

In the lands that currently comprise the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, it is likely that the California Clapper Rail was once common throughout all three Counties.  Today, it is quite rare in the Park:  most of the suitable habitat has been lost, and the few remaining places are not thought to host resident populations of the species.  However, on a lucky day you can still find them in certain park lands in San Mateo and Marin Counties. 

Conservation Action Item

The California Clapper Rail's remaining habitats face a wide variety of threats, but perhaps the most heart-breaking is predation by domestic and feral cats. Domestic cats enrich our lives and our communities in many ways. But domestic cats are not native to California, and many of our state's indigenous birds have not developed adequate defenses to these efficient predators. According to the American Bird Conservancy, domestic and feral cats are primarily responsible for the extinction of 33 bird species since the 1600s, and ground-nesting birds such as the California Clapper Rail are particularly vulnerable to this threat. Please help reduce predation pressure on the California Clapper Rail by keeping your cat indoors and/or encouraging others to do the same.

For more information about this Conservation Action Item:

Golden Gate Audubon Society

East Bay SPCA

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Previous Comments

Posted by: John_Parulis | 2008-06-25 22:38:02

We are fighting to save clapper rails in our neighborhood creek, Gallinas Creek, in San Rafael. I have been filming clapper rails for over a year now in the creek and had an article about this published in the MarinIJ. Please visit our web site to view a long list of clapper rail videos at various locations on the creek. The endangered Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse, also makes its home on Gallinas Creek but I have been unable to film this little guy so far. I would be happy to show interested parties our creek and possibly some clapper rails.

 

Posted by: Sandra Ross | 2008-06-25 22:38:58

The Clapper Rail videos at GallinasCreek.org are beautiful and amazing! That creek must be saved from development!

 

Posted by: Tom Mc | 2008-06-25 22:39:55

The description says, "on a lucky day you can still find [clapper rails] in certain park lands in San Mateo and Marin Counties"--but it doesn't say where! Can anybody narrow it down a little?

 

Posted by: Matt Z. | 2008-06-25 22:40:30

The best bet for finding Clapper Rail is probably at the very north end of the GGNRA boundary, which is at the south end of Tomales Bay, where they have been recorded only a few times. This would require a search during an extreme high tide which could also produce Black Rail and Yellow Rail.

 

Posted by: Cheryl erb | 2008-06-25 22:40:58

Another great reason to get cats spayed and neutered.

 

Posted by: MarinBirds | 2008-06-30 01:01:54

If you take a close look at the .kml file of the GGNRA legislative boundary (you can download it from the About GGNRA page on this site, and then use Google Earth to view it) you'll notice that almost all of the southern and eastern parts of Tomales Bay are part of the GGNRA. That will be your best bet for a clapper rail in the park. Tomales Bay is historic breeding habitat for the bird, but they were wiped out long ago. Today clapper rails are seen maybe once a decade in Tomales Bay! Someday we hope they will stick around and raise a family, but until then thanks to the Big Year competitors for looking out for our endangered species!