''Porphyrio'' is the swamphen or swamp hen

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

genus in the rail family. It includes some smaller species which are usually called "purple gallinules", and which are sometimes separated as genus ''Porphyrula'' or united with the gallinules proper (or "moorhens") in '' Gallinula''. The ''Porphyrio'' gallinules are distributed in the warmer regions of the world. The group probably originated in Africa in the Middle Miocene, before spreading across the world in waves from the Late Miocene to Pleistocene. The

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

''Porphyrio'' was introduced by the French zoologist

Mathurin Jacques Brisson Mathurin Jacques Brisson (; 30 April 1723 – 23 June 1806) was a French zoologist and natural philosopher. Brisson was born at Fontenay-le-Comte. The earlier part of his life was spent in the pursuit of natural history; his published works ...

in 1760 with the

western swamphen The western swamphen (known as Purple Swamphen) (''Porphyrio porphyrio'') is a swamphen in the rail family Rallidae, one of the six species of purple swamphen. From the French name ''talève sultane'', it is also known as the sultana bird. This ...

(''Porphyrio porphyrio'') as the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

. The genus name ''Porphyrio'' is the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

name for "swamphen", meaning "

purple Purple is any of a variety of colors with hue between red and blue. In the RGB color model used in computer and television screens, purples are produced by mixing red and blue light. In the RYB color model historically used by painters, pu ...

Species

The genus contains ten extant species and two that have become extinct in historical times:

Extant species

Purple swamphen 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 * Gr ...

complex **

Western swamphen The western swamphen (known as Purple Swamphen) (''Porphyrio porphyrio'') is a swamphen in the rail family Rallidae, one of the six species of purple swamphen. From the French name ''talève sultane'', it is also known as the sultana bird. This ...

, ''Porphyrio porphyrio'' **

African swamphen The African swamphen (''Porphyrio madagascariensis'') is a species of swamphen occurring in Egypt, Sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar. It used to be considered a subspecies of the purple swamphen, which it resembles, but with bronze green or gre ...

, ''Porphyrio madagascariensis'' **

Grey-headed swamphen The 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, bu ...

, ''Porphyrio poliocephalus'' **

Black-backed swamphen The black-backed swamphen (''Porphyrio indicus'') is a species of swamphen occurring from southeast Asia to Sulawesi and Borneo. It used to be considered a subspecies of the purple swamphen The purple swamphen has been split into the following sp ...

, ''Porphyrio indicus'' **

Philippine swamphen Philippine swamphen (''Porphyrio pulverulentus'' Temminck, 1826) is a species of swamphen occurring in The Philippines. It used to be considered a subspecies of the purple swamphen The purple swamphen has been split into the following species: ...

, ''Porphyrio pulverulentus'' **

Australasian swamphen The Australasian swamphen (''Porphyrio melanotus'') is a species of swamphen (''Porphyrio'') occurring in eastern Indonesia (the Moluccas, Aru and Kai Islands), Papua New Guinea, Australia and New Zealand. In New Zealand, it is known as the pu ...

, ''Porphyrio melanotus'' *

South Island takahē South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...

, ''Porphyrio hochstetteri'' *

Allen's gallinule Allen's gallinule (''Porphyrio alleni''), formerly known as the lesser gallinule, is a small waterbird of the family Rallidae. Its former binomial name is ''Porphyrula alleni''. ''Porphyrio'' is the Latin for "swamphen", and ''alleni'', like the ...

, also known as lesser gallinule, ''Porphyrio alleni'' (formerly ''Porphyrula alleni'') *

American purple gallinule The purple gallinule (''Porphyrio martinicus'') is a swamphen in the genus ''Porphyrio''. It is in the order Gruiformes, meaning "crane-like", an order which also contains cranes, rails, and crakes. The purple gallinule is a rail (bird), rail sp ...

, ''Porphyrio martinicus'' (formerly ''Porphyrula martinica'') *

Azure gallinule The azure gallinule (''Porphyrio flavirostris'') is a species of bird in subfamily Rallinae of family Rallidae, the rails, gallinules, and coots. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Per ...

, ''Porphyrio flavirostris''

Extinct species

Lord Howe swamphen The white swamphen (''Porphyrio albus''), also known as the Lord Howe swamphen, Lord Howe gallinule or white gallinule, is an extinct species of Rallidae, rail which lived on Lord Howe Island, east of Australia. It was first encountered when t ...

, ''Porphyrio albus'' (early 19th century) *

Réunion swamphen The Réunion swamphen (''Porphyrio caerulescens''), also known as the Réunion gallinule or ' (French for "blue bird"), is a hypothetical extinct species of rail that was endemic to the Mascarene island of Réunion. While only known from 17th- ...

, or ', ''Porphyrio coerulescens'' (18th century, hypothetical species) *

Marquesas swamphen Marquesas swamphen (''Porphyrio paepae'') is a presumably extinct species of swamphen from the Marquesas Islands Hiva Oa and Tahuata. It was originally described from 600-year-old subfossil remains from Tahuata and Hiva Oa. It may have survived ...

, ''Porphyrio paepae'' (

prehistoric Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...

or ) *

North Island takahē The North Island takahē ( mi, moho) (''Porphyrio mantelli'') is an extinct rail that was found in the North Island of New Zealand. This flightless species is known from subfossils from a number of archeological sites and from one possible 189 ...

, or ', ''Porphyrio mantelli'' (

or 1890s) *

New Caledonian swamphen The New Caledonian gallinule (''Porphyrio kukwiedei'') was a species of bird in the family Rallidae. It was endemic to New Caledonia and probably became extinct due to hunting, habitat loss and the presence of invasive species following human set ...

, ''Porphyrio kukwiedei'' (

or more recent) *

Huahine swamphen The Huahine swamphen (''Porphyrio mcnabi'') was a species of bird in the family Rallidae. It was a small swamphen endemic to Huahine in the Society Islands of French Polynesia. It is known only from subfossil remains found at the Fa'ahia archaeo ...

, ''Porphyrio mcnabi'' (

) * Buka swamphen, ''Porphyrio'' sp. (

) * Giant swamphen, ''Porphyrio'' sp. (

) * New Ireland swamphen, ''Porphyrio'' sp. (

) * Norfolk Island swamphen, ''Porphyrio'' sp. (

) * Rota swamphen, ''Porphyrio'' sp. (

) * Mangaia swamphen/woodhen, ?''Porphyrio'' sp. (

) - would belong into ''Porphyrula'', ''Gallinula'' or ''Pareudiastes''

References

*Taylor, P. Barry & van Perlo, Ber (1998): ''Rails: a guide to the rails, crakes, gallinules, and coots of the world''. Yale University Press, New Haven.

External links

Swamphens fighting, Centennial Park, Sydney
YouTube
Swamphens fighting, Centennial Park, Sydney
YouTube Bird genera Taxa named by Mathurin Jacques Brisson {{Gruiformes-stub