Common Gallinule

Overview

The common gallinule, Gallinula galeata, is a rail species split from the common moorhen by the American Ornithologists' Union in 2011. It is one of the most conspicuous rail species in North America, sharing this distinction with the American coot.

Identification

• Dark plumage with a white undertail, yellow legs, and a red frontal shield.
• Adults are 32–35 cm in length and weigh between 310–456 g.
• Young birds are browner and lack the red frontal shield.
• Produces a wide range of gargling calls and emits loud hisses when threatened.

Habitat

Found throughout the Americas, inhabiting well-vegetated marshes, ponds, canals, and other wetland environments. Populations in regions where water freezes, such as southern Canada and the northern USA, migrate to more temperate areas.

Diet

Consumes a wide variety of vegetable material and small aquatic creatures. Forages beside or in the water, sometimes upending its body to feed, and uses its wide feet to hop across lily pads.

Did you know?

When threatened, nestlings may cling to a parent's body, allowing the adult to carry its offspring to safety while flying away.