Yesterday, while sitting for a few minutes by the lake before work, two Purple Swamphens, Porphyrio porphyrio seemingly saw me sit down, appeared to purposely walk from the lake shore and across the concrete path in my direction. The two birds walked to within 30cm of me, and walked around the back of me and to my other side. They did not appear to be scared by me. It was a great opportunity to take some photos and to observe these birds up close. One thing I noticed was their long legs and feet – a distinct red colour with obvious large ‘scales’, with elongated toes for wading through marshy areas. The birds lingered for a while around me then moved up the grassy slope near by.
Link – for a description of the species – http://www.birdsinbackyards.net/species/Porphyrio-porphyrio
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