• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
Where premium quality meets exceptional value. ZEISS Conquest HDX.

australasian swamphen

  1. Oh well! If you insist! mutter mutter...

    Oh well! If you insist! mutter mutter...

    Seems he got the message finally and went off in disgust showing a clean heel!! Had yet another blood test yesterday, which shows low ferritin levels, a blood protein. I'd never heard of this, so researching I found it was only being developed as a clinical test in the 1970's - which was about...
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australasian swamphen juvenile australia lake claremont nikon coolpix p900 november perth western australia
    • Comments: 12
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  2. I've shown you how.... now go and find your own food!

    I've shown you how.... now go and find your own food!

    We were treated to a rather close view of an adult Australasian Swamphen with a hungry youngster!
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia lake claremont nikon coolpix p900 november perth porphyrio melanotus western australia
    • Comments: 11
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  3. Confusion

    Confusion

    I get so confused between Australian and Australasian species LOL. This is an Australasian Swamphen, not as I have shown on the picture "Australian". I couldn't work out why I couldn't find many pictures in my Gallery LOL. A species that really doesn't seem to mind people wandering about round...
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia australian swamphen lake claremont nikon coolpix p900 november perth porphyrio melanotus western australia
    • Comments: 11
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  4. Australasian Swamphen

    Australasian Swamphen

    Australasian Swamphen feeding chick.
    • thunor
    • Media item
    • australasian swamphen porphyrio melanotus
    • Comments: 4
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  5. Swampy

    Swampy

    After a good breakfast we drove upstream right along the promenade, then slowly back to see what was around. Australasian Swamphen was the first we came across.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia mannum nikon coolpix p900 november porphyrio melanotus south australia
    • Comments: 7
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  6. Australasian Swamphen

    Australasian Swamphen

    Australasian Swamphen, Purple Swamphen
    • thunor
    • Media item
    • australasian swamphen porphyrio melanotus purple swamphen
    • Comments: 3
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  7. Australasian Swamphens

    Australasian Swamphens

    Australasian Swamphen, aka Purple Swamphen
    • thunor
    • Media item
    • australasian swamphen porphyrio melanotus
    • Comments: 4
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  8. Resting?

    Resting?

    Walking along a path, there was a gap in the trees and I could see a black blob in the long grass on the other side of a ditch, which turned out to be an Australasian Swamphen. I'm not sure if it was just having a rest or was brooding some eggs.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 adelaide australasian swamphen australia laratinga wetlands nikon coolpix p900 october south australia
    • Comments: 6
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  9. I really didn't expect to see one there

    I really didn't expect to see one there

    These Australasian Swamphens are quite heavy looking birds really, so I wasn't expecting to find one up in a tree like this.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia brisbane fuji finepix hs50 october porphyrio melanotus queensland sandy camp road wetlands
    • Comments: 7
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  10. Attracting

    Attracting

    The swamphens display appears to consist of raising his uppertail to show the white undertail coverts.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia brisbane display fuji finepix hs50 october porphyrio melanotus queensland sandy camp road wetlands
    • Comments: 14
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  11. Swampy in a swamp

    Swampy in a swamp

    ... well it's not really a swamp... a lake with water lilies! When the light catches these Swamphens right, they are such a beautiful colour.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia brisbane fuji finepix hs50 minnippi park porphyrio melanotus queensland september
    • Comments: 11
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  12. Swampy

    Swampy

    On the grass beside the path a couple of Swamphens were foraging. They have lovely white backsides, not seen here.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia brisbane fuji finepix hs50 minnippi park porphyrio melanotus queensland september
    • Comments: 8
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  13. Swampie

    Swampie

    The last bird I photographed before we got back to the car was an Australasian Swamphen on the lake shore.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia herdsman lake nikon coolpix p900 november perth porphyrio melanotus western australia
    • Comments: 15
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  14. Swampy

    Swampy

    Also pottering around beside the car park was an Australasian Swamphen. Even after two months I was always surprised to see these guys completely oblivious to the presence of people!
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia herdsman lake nikon coolpix p900 november perth porphyrio melanotus western australia
    • Comments: 15
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  15. Feed me

    Feed me

    Also at our look out pontoon was a chick with an adult Swamphen. Obviously very hungry too, really going for the begging posture. This was the first chick I'd seen I think.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia lake claremont nikon coolpix p900 november perth porphyrio melanotus western australia
    • Comments: 15
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  16. Swampy

    Swampy

    These guys just wander everywhere. They don't really seem to be very concerned about people being around. This picture really seems to accentuate the size of that bill, doesn't it.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia lake claremont nikon coolpix p900 november perth porphyrio melanotus western australia
    • Comments: 12
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  17. Flasher

    Flasher

    After breakfast and having packed up the car (we were heading back home to Adelaide today), we had a drive further up the river to see what was about at the northern end of the town. There was a viewing platform which we made for, but delaying me was an Australasian Swamphen, who was thinking...
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia mannum nikon coolpix p900 november porphyrio melanotus south australia
    • Comments: 15
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  18. A swamp lover

    A swamp lover

    There was quite a lot of thick vegetation around the shores of the lake and this Swamphen was rather partial to his wee patch. This was right beside the path and he wasn't bothered by us walking by at all. These were split from Purple Swamphen a few years ago, but they're still lumped in the...
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 adelaide australasian swamphen australia laratinga nikon coolpix p900 octrober porphyrio melanotus south australia
    • Comments: 13
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  19. Peeping out

    Peeping out

    This Australasian Swamphen was just showing a glimpse of his white undertail... looks like a single feather. This was all I got as he disappeared behind the tree! Originally included in the Purple Swamphen all those were split into 6 species a few years ago.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia carrara lakes emerald lakes gold coast nikon coolpix p900 october porphyrio melanotus queensland
    • Comments: 13
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  20. Australasian Swamphen

    Australasian Swamphen

    • peterday
    • Media item
    • australasian swamphen laratinga porphyrio melanotus
    • Comments: 16
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  21. Australasian Swamphen

    Australasian Swamphen

    • Ken Doy
    • Media item
    • australasian swamphen
    • Comments: 14
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  22. Flasher

    Flasher

    There was a swamphen at the edge of the lake, who seemed to be doing a bit of display, flicking his tail up and down, exposing brilliant white undertail coverts. This picture just shows it in the nearly fully up position.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia brisbane display fuji finepix hs50 exr october porphyrio melanotus queensland sandy camp road wetlands
    • Comments: 8
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  23. Ooops

    Ooops

    ... sorry complete forgot it was Saturday today LOL "If I can't see her, she can't see me. Right?"
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia australian swamphen brisbane fuji finepix hs50 minnippi park porphyrio melanotus queensland saturday fun september
    • Comments: 16
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  24. Pecking around

    Pecking around

    There were a couple of Australasian Swamphens on the grass. These used to be called Purple Gallinules, along with a load of other world-wide species, but there was a taxonomic split of them a few years ago.
    • delia todd
    • Media item
    • 2019 australasian swamphen australia brisbane fuji finepix hs50 exr minnippi park porphyrio melanotus queensland september
    • Comments: 12
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
  25. Australasian swamphen

    Australasian swamphen

    In New Zealand Auckland
    • hindleygreener
    • Media item
    • australasian swamphen
    • Comments: 9
    • Category: Asia, Australia & Pacific Islands
Back
Top