The Ruddy Crake (Laterallus ruber) is a bird in the rail family, Rallidae. It is a small crake, 14-16.5 cm in length. It is mostly bright chestnut in colour with a paler chin and belly, blackish crown and dark grey ear-coverts. The bill is black, the iris is red and the legs and feet are olive-green.
The bird occurs from Mexico south to north-west Costa Rica. It is found in freshwater habitats such as marshes, reedbeds, damp fields and ditches.
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—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)