Australasian Swamphen
Porphyrio melanotus
Call and song
Recording 1
Recording 2
Recording 3
About the Australasian Swamphen
Conspicuous blue and black waterhen with gigantic red bill and forehead shield. Has large feet and white under tail feathers which it flicks up and down when walking. Occurs in a wide variety of wetland habitats and is a common sight in urban parks. They are very vocal, often making loud crowing calls and a range of other shorter squawks, including a single note squawk at night.
Species account: eBird.org, fetched 2025-12-26 · How these pages are made
Where it has been recorded
Recorded in 16 of the 253 countries we have eBird lists for. Each opens that country's checklist.
