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Gallinula mortierii
The Tasmanian Nativehen is a stocky flightless bird between 43 and 51 centimetres (17 and 20 in) in length. The upperparts are olive brown with a white patch on the flank. The underparts are darker with a bluish grey tinge. The short tail is close to black and mostly held erect. The legs are thick and powerful, with a grey scaly appearance and sharp claws. The eyes are bright red. The bill has a small frontal shield and is a greenish yellow colour.
The Tasmanian Nativehen is a sedentary species, living around open grassy areas close to water. It is widespread in Tasmania apart from the west and south west regions
Endemic to Tasmania.
Spotted on Sep 1, 2012
Submitted on Sep 4, 2012
9 Comments
Congrats Lori, this spotting was featured in our bird quiz! https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=...
They're in the Rail family, Alice, so they are well adapted to walking on marsh plants. They're also fine swimmers, even if they ride a bit low in the water.
Their feet are fascinating!
Oops. My typing sucks, Mark. Or hadn't you noticed by now?
Great shots lori.tas. A beautiful native Tasmanian! and I really like the name you chose for her too... Tasmanina has a lovely Italian ring to it.
Lovely :)
How special! He's really lovely :)
It's the least colorful of our hens Leanne, but they're very common in in urban and suburban surrounds, and on the roadside verges. Since they're Tasmanian only, we have a special place in our heart for them.
Cool!