Common Moorhen

Common Moorhen, adult

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1. Description
2. Sound
3. Conservation Status
4. Other Names
5. Cool Facts
6. Full detailed species account

The most widely distributed member of the rail family, the Common Moorhen inhabits marshes and ponds from Canada to Chile, from northern Europe to southern Africa, and across Asia to the Pacific. Vocal and boldly marked, the species can be quite conspicuous, sometimes using its long toes to walk atop floating vegetation.

Description

• Dark, with white flank stripe.
• Red bill and forehead.
• Swims on surface of water like a duck.
• Bill triangular like a chicken's, not flat like a duck's.
• White stripe on sides of undertail.

• Size: 32-35 cm (13-14 in)
• Wingspan: 54-62 cm (21-24 in)
• Weight: 310-456 g (10.94-16.1 ounces)

Sex Differences

Sexes similar, male slightly larger.

Sound

A highly varied repertoire of calls, including clucks, whinnies, cackles, squawks, and yelps.

Conservation Status

Listed as threatened or as a species of special concern in several Midwestern and Northeastern states because of loss of wetland habitat, predation by introduced mammals, and other factors.

Other Names

Gallinule poule-d'eau, Poule d'eau (French)
Pollo de agua, Gallareta frentirroja, Pollona negra (Spanish)
Common Gallinule, Florida Gallinule (English)

Cool Facts

• The Common Moorhen has long toes that makes it possible to walk on soft mud and floating vegetation. The toes have no lobes or webbing to help in swimming, but the moorhen is a good swimmer anyway.

• The Common Moorhen sometimes lifts its feet out of the water in front of the body while swimming, perhaps to pass over vegetation.

• Newly hatched chicks of the Common Moorhen have spurs on their wings that help them climb into the nest or grab emergent vegetation.

• Twelve subspecies of Common Gallinule are recognized from around the world, most differing only in size or brightness of plumage. One subspecies is found only in the Hawaiian Islands and has been known as the Hawaiian Gallinule.

Sources used to construct this page:

Bannor, B. K., and E. Kiviat. 2002. Common Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus). In The Birds of North America, No. 685 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.