Yellow Rail - new Dearborn species

Another new species has been added to the Dearborn checklist. I received, through a chain of 6 people, a clear photo of a Yellow Rail at the Ford Rouge Plant from October 8. It was at a building near the Dearborn Truck Plant. There is wetland/pond habitat at the visitor center of the plant, adjacent to the truck plant that the bird may have been attracted to. I do not have permission to post the photo, but there is no doubt of the identity of the bird. 

I have no information how long/if the bird remained, but there is no public access to most of this facility. The photo showed the bird near a building. This could indicate it was injured, but I have heard of rails, including Yellow Rails, showing up in unusual locations like this during migration. Yellow Rails often try to flee by running and hiding rather than flying, yet may appear so tame as to emerge from marsh vegetation at an observer's feet. Thus, a good photo of an ambulatory rail doesn't necessarily indicate that the bird needed "rescuing."

Yellow Rails are secretive, marsh-dwelling birds that are hard to find even at known breeding locations, such as Seney National Wildlife Refuge in the Upper Peninsula. The species is listed as State Threatened in Michigan.