Virginia Rail duetting

Grunting by Virginia Rails is usually a duet by a paired male and female, with the female calling at a higher frequency.

Grunting by several pairs (April, NJ)










Grunting calls are thought to be used in pair recognition and territorial defense (whereas the ti-dick and less often heard kicker calls are thought to be soliciting vocalizations by unmated males and females respectively). Virginia Rails have been reported to respond more to playbacks of duetted grunts than single bird grunts.