Common Gallinule (Gallinula galeata) — identification, habitat & look-alikes

Common Gallinules are dark birds of U.S. marshes and ponds, with a red forehead and bill and a white stripe along each side. Their long toes let them walk across floating plants, and they swim along marsh edges.

Appearance

Appearance: This dark marsh bird is about 13–14 in (32–35 cm) long. Adults have a red forehead and bill with a yellow tip, plus a white stripe along each side.

Look-alikes

American CootFulica americana

An American Coot has a pale, usually white bill and forehead. An adult Common Gallinule has a red bill and forehead and a white stripe along its side.

Why they get mixed upBoth are dark waterbirds on U.S. ponds.

Where it lives

Typical habitats: freshwater marshes
reedy ponds
rice fields
Range: In the United States it occurs in eastern, Gulf Coast, and western wetlands, including California. Some southern populations stay year-round.
Seasonal presence: Northern birds migrate, while some southern birds stay year-round.

Behavior

Diet: It eats water plants and seeds as well as snails and insects.
Activity: It swims along marsh edges and steps across floating plants on long toes.

Life cycle

Nest: A pair builds a broad nest of grasses and sedges on thick marsh vegetation.
Clutch size: 3–15 eggs
Incubation: 19–22 days

Name and classification

About the name: This bird was formerly called Common Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus).

Conservation

IUCN Red List: LCLeast ConcernLow risk of extinction
Status: The Hawaiian Gallinule (G. g. sandvicensis), a separately named , is federally endangered in the United States.

7 sources