Common Gallinule

Common gallinules are dark, chicken-like marsh birds set apart by a bright red bill and frontal shield tipped in yellow, plus a white stripe running along the flank. They used to be lumped with the Old World common moorhen as one species until the American population was split off on its own. Unlike the more secretive true rails, gallinules swim buoyantly and walk openly on ground near water, and they favor freshwater marshes and ponds with a mix of open water and dense cover across much of the Americas.