PLEASE! If you see any mistakes, I'm 100% sure that I have wrongly identified some birds. So please let me know on my guestbook at the bottom of the page
The Purple swamphen has been split into the following species:
• Western swamphen, Porphyrio porphyrio, southwest Europe and northwest Africa
• African swamphen, Porphyrio madagascariensis, sub-Saharan continental Africa and Madagascar
• Grey-headed Swamphen, Porphyrio poliocephalus, Middle East, through the Indian subcontinent to southern China and northern Thailand
• Black-backed swamphen, Porphyrio indicus, southeast Asia to Sulawesi
Grey-headed Swamphen (Porphyrio poliocephalus) is a species of swamphen occurring from the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent to southern China and northern Thailand. It used to be considered a subspecies of the purple swamphen, but was elevated to full species status in 2015; today the purple swamphen is considered a superspecies and each of its six races are designated full species.
The male has an elaborate courtship display, holding water weeds in his bill and bowing to the female with loud chuckles.
The grey-headed swamphen was introduced to North America in the late 1990s due to avicultural escapes in the Pembroke Pines, Florida area. State wildlife biologists attempted to eradicate the birds, but they have multiplied and can now be found in many areas of southern Florida.
Ornithological authorities consider it likely that the swamphen will become an established part of Florida's avifauna. It was added to the American Birding Association checklist in February 2013.
Sighted: (Date of first photo that I could use)
21st of December 2015 Location: Red lotus Sea in Udon Thani
Visit Nick Upton atwww.thaibirding.comfor HOT birding tips for sites around Bangkok and Thailand. There are reviews of the birding sites with maps and information.
And if you like Nick Upton's web page you will also likewww.norththailandbirding.comI have used this page together with Nick Upton's page when planning my birding tours. Excellent reviews and information about the birding sites.
I also got the Thai names of the birds from www.norththailandbirding.com. There is a bird check list with all the names in English and Thai. And of course also the Scientific Name. Down load the birdlist in Microsoft Excel format atwww.norththailandbirding.comOr down load the Excel sheet by clickingHERE
And my new aid, maybe, and I say maybe the best aid. I brought my mobile phone as my SIM card have stopped working and I tried to get it to work again so I can use the internet. Thus I had my phone in my pocket on my first game drive in Jim Corbett National Park.
We saw a bird and I asked my Guide and the driver if they had a pen and a paper as I had forgot my pen and paper in my room. I remembered my LG phone and I recorded the name. And thus I will always bring my phone. Writing the name in the car and I have found more than once that it can be hard to read what I had wrote when I'm back in my room.
So now I always have my mobile in my pocket and it has been a great help. And from November 2018 I use eBird. Bird watching in U.A.E and Oman and my guide in Dubai recommended eBird and I have used the app since then and I note every bird I can identify in my eBird app.
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง December 2015 - Red Lotus Sea in Udon Thani
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 December 2015 - Red Lotus Sea in Udon Thani
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 February 2016 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 February 2016 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 February 2016 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 February 2016 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 February 2016 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 February 2016 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 February 2016 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 February 2016 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 February 2016 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 February 2016 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 21 February 2016 - Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Walking on the bottom as the bird cannot swim
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 25 May 2020 - Praek Nam Daeng, Samut Songkhram
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 16 June 2020 - Ban Laem agricultural area, Phetchaburi
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 16 June 2020 - Ban Laem agricultural area, Phetchaburi
Grey-headed Swamphen / นกอีโก้ง 4 February 2023 - Thale Noi (ทะเลน้อย), Phatthalung
PLEASE! If I have made any mistakes identifying any bird, PLEASE let me know on my guestbook