Watercock vs White Swamphen

Gallicrex cinerea compared with Porphyrio albus

Side-by-Side Comparison

Attribute Watercock White Swamphen
Scientific Name Gallicrex cinerea Porphyrio albus
Order Gruiformes Gruiformes
Family Rallidae Rallidae
Conservation Status Least Concern Extinct
Length — —
Wingspan 37.2 cm (14.6 in) —
Weight 426.6666666666667 g (15.05 oz) —
Diet -- --
Clutch Size 3-6 --
Population Trend — —

Habitat Comparison

Shared Habitats

Watercock only

None

White Swamphen only

Conservation Status

Least Concern

Watercock

Extinct

White Swamphen

About These Birds

Watercock

Watercock (Gallicrex cinerea) is a medium 42–43 cm rail of South and South-East Asia. Strongly sexually dimorphic; breeding male dark slaty with distinctive red frontal shield and knob; female brown-streaked. Inhabits rice paddies, freshwater marshes, and flooded grasslands from India east to China and Indonesia. Partly migratory. Polygynous.

White Swamphen

White Swamphen (Porphyrio albus) is an extinct all-white swamphen formerly endemic to Lord Howe Island, Australia. Known from specimens collected around 1790 and early drawings; had reduced wings indicating flightlessness or near-flightlessness. Extirpated by hunting after European discovery. Related to Australasian Swamphen.

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