Azure gallinule
| Azure gallinule | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Gruiformes |
| Family: | Rallidae |
| Genus: | Porphyrio |
| Species: | P. flavirostris |
| Binomial name | |
| Porphyrio flavirostris (Gmelin, 1789) | |
The azure gallinule (Porphyrio flavirostris) is a species of bird in the family Rallidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, the United States, and Venezuela.
The bill and frontal shield is a pale greenish-yellow.The wing coverts are greenish-blue while the back and tail are browner. The throat and underparts are white while the legs are yellow.
It is found in freshwater marshes where there is floating vegetation and this includes marshy edges of rivers and lakes. Nest is an open cup of leaves concealed in dense marsh vegetation. Clutch size is 4-5 eggs, incubated by both parents.
Diet consists of invertebrates, insects and seeds taken from water and vegetation. Climbs in reed stems to bend them over water to pick up food.
References
- ↑ BirdLife International (2012). "Porphyrio flavirostris". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.