From Opus

Photo by julien
Australia, October 2004

Tribonyx ventralis

[edit] Identification

38cm

• Brownish-grey
• White spots on flanks
• Green bill and frontal shield
• Orange-red lower mandible
• Pink legs and feet
• Bright yellow eye.

[edit] Distribution

Endemic to Australia.

Vagrant to Tasmania and New Zealand, possibly in irruption years.

[edit] Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species^[2].
It was formerly placed in genus Gallinula.

[edit] Habitat

Open margins of wetlands, swamps, shallow lake edges, saltflats and semi-arid regions.

Normally only found inland, but can irrupt after good breeding seasons and appear anywhere - coastal or urban areas.

[edit] Behaviour

[edit] Diet

The diet includes seeds, vegetation and insects.

[edit] Breeding

The breed in swamps near open water. A cup-shaped nest is formed from stalks, twigs and leaves, then lined with grass and feathers. The clutch consists of 5-7 pale green eggs, which are incubated for about 20 days.

[edit] References

1. Pizzey, G and F Knight. 1997. Field Guide to Birds of Australia. London: HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 978-0207196911
2. Clements, JF. 2009. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2009. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.
3. Birds in Backyards

• List of references

[edit] External Links