Appearance: - The Common Moorhen has a blackish head, neck, and mantle, reddish-brown eyes, a brown back, slate-grey undersides, with white under the tail, yellow legs and feet, and a distinctive red frontal face shield and beak, tipped with yellow. Both sexes look alike.
Notes: - The Common Moorhen is a bird in the family Rallidae. It is usually found foraging beside the water amongst the vegetation. The Common Gallinule (Gallinula Galeata) found in the Americas is similar to the Common Moorhen but has recently (2011) been seen as a separate species by the American Ornithologists' Union. The Common Moorhen is sometimes confused with the Coot which is related to the Moorhen although the Coot has a white beak and face-shield while the Moorhen has a red beak and face-shield. Like the Coot, the Moorhen is an aggressive bird and will fight using its feet.
WWT Slimbridge Video clips:
Current video:
Moorhen - March, June & October 2011
More videos:
Moorhen - March, May & July 2012
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