- Tribonyx ventralis
Gallinula ventralis
Identification
30–38 cm (11¾-15 in)
- Brownish-grey
- White spots on flanks
- Green bill and frontal shield
- Orange-red lower mandible
- Pink legs and feet
- Bright yellow eye.
Distribution
Endemic to Australia.
Vagrant to Tasmania and New Zealand, possibly in irruption years.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species[2].
It was formerly placed in genus Gallinula.
Habitat
Open margins of wetlands, swamps, shallow lake edges, saltflats and semi-arid regions.
Normally only found inland, but can irrupt after good breeding seasons and appear anywhere - coastal or urban areas.
Behaviour
Diet
The diet includes seeds, vegetation and insects.
Breeding
They breed in swamps near open water. A cup-shaped nest is formed from stalks, twigs and leaves, then lined with grass and feathers. The clutch consists of 5-7 pale green eggs, which are incubated for about 20 days.
References
- Pizzey, G and F Knight. 1997. Field Guide to Birds of Australia. London: HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 978-0207196911
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Birds in Backyards
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Black-tailed Nativehen. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 15 October 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Black-tailed_Nativehen
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
