Do Common Gallinules Get Jealous of Purple Gallinules?

By Corey • February 24, 2012 • 14 comments

I imagine so. What do you think? And if anyone wants to provide a caption for the picture below please have at it in the comments.

This is a Purple Gallinule Porphyrio martinica and a Common Gallinule Gallinula galeata at the Circle B Bar Reserve in Lakeland, Florida. Can you tell which is which? (Click image for larger version.)

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Tags: Circle B Bar Reserve, Florida, gallinules, rails

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About the Author

Corey

Corey is a New Yorker who has lived most of his life upstate but has spent the last three years in Queens. He's only been birding since 2005 but has garnered a respectable life list by birding whenever he wasn't working as a union representative or spending time with his family. He lives in Forest Hills with Daisy, their son, Desmond Shearwater, and their two indoor cats, Hunter and B.B.

14 Responses to “Do Common Gallinules Get Jealous of Purple Gallinules?”

Jochen Feb 24th, 2012 at 8:10 am
Great capture!
I know which is which: if you look very closely, the colouration of the legs gives them away.
--BP-- Feb 24th, 2012 at 8:35 am
A couple of years ago a Moorhen… I mean Common Gallinule… was found on the Lake in Central Park.
It attracted a hoard of birders like it was an Ivory-billed Woodpecker or something.
As soon as everybody learned that they couldn’t count the bird because it was placed in the Lake after being found out on Broadway, they all scattered like House Sparrows with a Sharpie in pursuit….
Mike Feb 24th, 2012 at 8:57 am
Man, I love Purple Gallinules. Definitely in my top 10.
Robert Mortensen Feb 24th, 2012 at 10:14 am
CAPTION: “The AOU finally comes to the determination that the Common Gallinule is really just a female Purple Gallinule. Sorry for the species lumping every body!”
jory Feb 24th, 2012 at 10:19 am
CAPTION:
Common Gallinule: Take two aspirin and the discoloration should go away by morning.
Rick Wright Feb 24th, 2012 at 1:13 pm
That’s a great photo, Corey!
Duncan Feb 24th, 2012 at 2:14 pm
They both look a lot like moorhens, come to think of it. Weird.
Shyloh Feb 24th, 2012 at 6:39 pm
CAPTION: Which of these birds has been feeding on Skittles?
Fantastic image.
Cindy Feb 24th, 2012 at 6:51 pm
So is a Moorhen and a common gallinule are the same thing?
Duncan Feb 24th, 2012 at 7:14 pm
Cindy – basically, yes. It is one of many instances where Americans can’t even name birds properly.
It occurs that the caption should be “Are your moorhens unsightly and covered in soot? Use Soot-be-gone for all your waterbird polishing needs!”
Grant McCreary Feb 24th, 2012 at 11:36 pm
My theory is that this Common Gallinule was photo-bombing us. With four(!!) of his Purple cousins in the same 10ft square, there wasn’t any way we would have taken his picture otherwise.
dl Mar 24th, 2012 at 4:06 pm
@Duncan, “where Americans can’t even name birds properly” Please don’t be rude. It is uncalled for such as remarks regarding poor grammar and punctuation would be.
dl Mar 24th, 2012 at 4:10 pm
This is a beautiful picture, Thank You.
Corey Mar 24th, 2012 at 4:16 pm
@dl: Thanks! And don’t worry, Duncan was just cracking a joke about avian nomenclature.