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Banded rails (Hypotaenidia philippensis) were monitored using footprints before, during, and after the partial removal of 1.8 ha of mangroves (Avicennia marina) from a 2.4 ha area in the Ruakaka estuary. Mangrove removal occurred in two phases: adult trees in winter 2014 and juvenile plants and pneumatophores in winter 2015. Banded rails were only detected on the margins of mangroves during adult tree removal, and then throughout the cleared areas after seedling and pneumatophore removal. In 2016, 2018, and 2020, rails showed a similar use pattern in the uncleared and cleared areas to that used before mangrove removal. After mangrove seedling and pneumatophore removal, potential predators, including cats (Felis catus), were present most of the time, and mustelids (Mustela spp.) were present in summer.