Corn Crake

The corn crake is a medium-sized rail, 27–30 centimetres long with a wingspan of 42–53 centimetres; males weigh about 165 grams and females 145. The adult male has the crown and all the upperparts brown-black streaked with buff or grey, distinctive chestnut wing coverts with some white bars, and a blue-grey face, neck and breast apart from a pale brown streak from the bill base to behind the eye. The belly is white and the flanks and undertail are barred chestnut and white. The strong bill is flesh-toned and the legs and feet pale grey. (Wikipedia, general species account)

Also called the corncrake or landrail, it breeds in Europe and Asia as far east as western China and migrates to Africa for the Northern Hemisphere winter. Juveniles are similar in plumage to adults, and downy chicks are black, as with all rails. (Wikipedia, general species account)