By Kurt Buzard MD

Common Name: Common Gallinule
Scientific Name: Gallinula galeata
Subspecies: Seven subspecies are today considered valid; others have been described that are now considered junior synonyms. The one in Las Vegas is the North American Common Gallinule (Gallinula galeata cachinnans) which lives here year round.
Order/Family: Gruiformes/Rallidae (Rails)
Description: The gallinule has dark upper plumage with a charcoal gray body, and dark brown wings and tail. It has a white body stripe, white outer tail feathers, yellow legs without webbed feet and a red frontal shield. The young are browner and lack the red shield. It has a wide range of gargling calls and will emit loud hisses when threatened.
Distribution: it is distributed from North America all the way to South America and in Hawaii. Populations in areas where the waters freeze, such as southern Canada and the northern USA, will migrate to warmer areas in the winter.
Habitat: It lives around well-vegetated marshes, ponds, canals, and other wetlands in the Americas.





