[EBB Sightings] Calling Black Rails at Coyote Hills Regional Park (2/25)

I?ve been visiting Coyote Hills Regional Park occasionally at dawn
lately, on my way to work.  Today, I parked at the intersection of
Paseo Padre Parkway and Patterson Ranch Road at 0550 and walked in to
the park along Patterson Ranch Road.  I heard two repetitively calling
BLACK RAILS about 0.1-0.2 miles west of the entry kiosk from about
0630-0730.  The first bird was heard around 0630 just south of the
road, near a lone leafless tree.  It was giving a long series of
kee-kee-drrrr and kee-kee-kee-drrr calls, one call every couple of
seconds, fairly loudly, with occasional bouts of silence.   I listened
to this bird for about 15 minutes and made several ?video? recordings
with my point-and-shoot camera that I?ll attempt to post tonight.  I
also called this bird in to the Northern CA birdbox at this point.  As
I walked back east towards the entry kiosk, I was quite surprised to
hear a second BLACK RAIL giving the same calls, this time on the
opposite (north) side of the road, quite close to where one of these
birds was heard last March.   This second bird was still vocalizing
when I left the park around 0730.  I never saw either of these birds.
Is it possible that Black Rails are rare but regular at Coyote Hills?
Perhaps they?re even breeding here in small numbers?

I also heard one calling SORA and heard several VIRGINIA RAILS this
morning.  The VIRGINIA RAILS seem to be giving a variety of calls,
including the grunting calls, the tick-it calls and a call that sounds
like tik-it, tik-it, keer to my ears that I think is coming from one
of these rails as well ? I?ll also try to post a recording of that
bird tonight.

Also noted today was a screeching BARN OWL at 0600 from the fields
south of the entry kiosk and a Virginia Opossum ambling along the side
of the road.  I?ve also seen a pair of closely associating
WHITE-TAILED KITES that seem to favor the utility pole just north of
the abandoned-looking red building on the north side of Patterson
Ranch Road, perhaps 0.1 miles west of the intersection with Paseo
Padre.  They were observed copulating on Tuesday morning (2/23) ? BTW,
I did not hear the Black Rails on that morning, FWIW.

Ken Schneider
Redwood City