Gray-Necked Wood Rail, Belize, March 9, 2014

I don’t know, would the first thing you noticed about this bird be its Gray Neck? This most spectacular-looking creature made itself available nearly every day we walked by a partially flooded section near the road not far from the lodge where we were staying. I think it would take me several pages to accurately describe what this bird looks like and I still could not convey it. But I don’t know if I would start with the gray neck as being the most striking feature…

Check out the black that runs under his belly and up his tail. I mean, is this bird fancy or what?

As I recall there were several comments among participants about desiring these colors for interior decorating schemes.

If it weren’t for the pink legs, maybe this bird would be well-camouflaged against this chaotic background.