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Index of Subjects Hi Ian et all. I have doc or record shots of the bird and will post tonight. Tuma Sent from my iPhone On 2011-12-14, at 4:27 PM, iamclar@DAL.CA wrote: > Dear All: > > I just had an excited phone call from a visiting birding friend who wondered if the current "Common Moorhen" was indeed that. I responded that it was very doubtful. IT'S O.K. YOU'VE ALL CORRECTLY ID'D IT, IM SURE! > > But, the name of the species is now COMMON GALLINULE, as distinct from the COMMON MOORHEN of Eurasia. > > It was long accepted that the N. American and Eurasian birds were the same species, but the North Am. birds retained their different name. I knew them once as Florida Gallinule, then as Common Gallinule (still the name in not-so-old field guides), but then they were re-named Common Moorhen to conform with Brit. usage. > > Now they've been split on basis of behaviour, vocalizations, and genetics. > > There is a remote possibility that could one fly or hitch hike here from Europe; there are almost a 100 for Iceland (species??), and there is a Eurasian Coot record for Labrador. > > They're VERY similar; a salient difference is in the shape of the red shield - narrower and rounded at the top in Eurasian, broad and tapered from a flatish top end in the American. > > Cheers, Ian > > Ian McLaren > > >
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