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The Australasian swamphen (''Porphyrio melanotus'') is a species of
swamphen ''Porphyrio'' is the swamphen or swamp hen bird 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 pro ...
(''Porphyrio'') occurring in eastern Indonesia (the Moluccas,
Aru Aru or ARU may refer to: Education * Alpha Rho Upsilon, a defunct fraternity in the United States * Anglia Ruskin University, a university in England * Ardhi University, a Tanzanian public university Places * Aru Islands Regency, a group of isl ...
and Kai Islands), Papua New Guinea,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
and New Zealand. In New Zealand, it is known as the pukeko (from the Māori ). The species used to be considered a subspecies of the
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 ...
.


Distribution

The Australasian swamphen occurs in mainland Australia, eastern Indonesia, the Moluccas, Aru and Kai Islands, and in Papua New Guinea. It is also found on New Zealand's main islands and in the
Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...
and Kermadec Islands. It has a small shield, black upperparts, and a purple throat and breast. ''P. p. pelewensis'' (Hartlaub & Finsch, 1872) from Palau, resembles ''melanotus'' but has greener upperparts and is smaller. ''P. p. melanopterus'' (Bonaparte, 1856) is found from the Lesser Sundas and Moluccas to New Guinea. It is as ''melanotus'' but smaller, more variable and less blue in the upperparts. ''P. p. bellus'' (Gould, 1820) from Western Australia is as ''melanotus'' but has a cerulean blue throat and breast. ''P. p. samoensis'' (Peale, 1848) occurs from New Guinea to New Caledonia and Samoa, and is as ''melanotus'' but smaller, with a brown tinge on the back


Establishment in New Zealand

According to the Heather and Robertson ''Field Guide'', the bird seems to have become established in New Zealand about 1000 years ago. According to Millener (1981), it invaded from Australia less than 1,000 years ago. It is also assumed to have spread from Australia to New Guinea. Some assume that it became established before humans in New Zealand, but all known fossils occur in sites younger than 400 years and there is no evidence that they were on the main islands of New Zealand before the Māori arrived.Richard N. Holdaway, Trevor H. Worthy & Alan J. D. Tennyson (2001) A working list of breeding bird species of the New Zealand region at first human contact, New Zealand Journal of Zoology, 28:2, 119-187, DOI: 10.1080/03014223.2001.9518262 East Coast Māori say they came to New Zealand on the '' Horouta'' canoe which arrived about 24 generations ago. The Aotea tribe of the West Coast say that their ancestors introduced pukeko in the ''Aotea'' canoe. In support of the belief that it is a good flyer, and may have self-introduced, a dead pukeko was found on L'Esperance Rock, a tiny, isolated rock in the Kermadec group, more than 200 km from the nearest established population. This demonstrates the ability of swamphens to fly great distances over the sea. This ability to disperse is not unique to swamphens, but is common to all continental Rallidae, hence they are often found on remote islands.


Description

The New Zealand population (along with green-yellow swamphens in Tasmania) are possibly slightly larger than mainland Australian birds, but are otherwise identical. When threatened, they will often walk away from danger rather than fly. When they fly, take-offs and landings are clumsy, and short flight distances are preferred.


Ecology

Australasian swamphens are considered to be the ancestors of several island species including the
extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...
Lord Howe swamphen and two species of
takahē The South Island takahē (''Porphyrio hochstetteri'') is a flightless swamphen indigenous to New Zealand and the largest living member of the rail family. It is often known by the abbreviated name takahē, which it shares with the recently ...
in New Zealand. On islands where closely related species have become extinct or declined due to human interference, such as New Zealand or New Caledonia, this species has established itself relatively recently.


Defence and behaviour

They live in groups of 3–12 individuals and are known to group together and shriek loudly to defend nests successfully during attacks by Australasian harriers. When unsuccessful at repelling predators, they may abandon their nest sites. A recent arrival to New Zealand, they have thrived in an environment that now contains introduced predators such as cats, rodents and mustelids (Brunin and Jamieson, 1995).


In Polynesian culture

The colour red was associated with nobility and power by Māori in New Zealand, so the bird was held in high esteem and held as a chiefly pet because of its red beak and legs. In Samoa, it is called ''manuali'i'' (literally, "chiefly bird"). Red was the prized color of Polynesian aristocracy and while birds with red plumage (such as the
red-tailed tropicbird The red-tailed tropicbird (''Phaethon rubricauda'') is a seabird native to tropical parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. One of three closely related species of tropicbird (Phaethontidae), it was described by Pieter Boddaert in 1783. Superfic ...
, some Hawaiian honeycreepers like the iiwi and
maroon shining parrot The maroon shining parrot or red shining-parrot (''Prosopeia tabuensis''), is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is endemic to the islands of Vanua Levu and Taveuni in Fiji and was introduced to the islands of southern Tonga in ...
) were highly prized, the swamphen was unique in deriving its prestige not from plumage but from its reddish face, beak, and legs. In old Samoa only chiefs could keep such birds as pets, and early European sailors noticed tethered and/or caged swamphens treated by Samoan chiefs as tamed pets. Some Samoans also considered the swamphen to be the incarnation of a mischievous, aggressive demon called Vave. There is no tradition of swamphens being taken as sport game or poultry food, except perhaps in time of necessity.


Māori metaphor

Pukeko are known for their bold scheming and determination. In times past, they raided gardens for ''kumara'' (sweet potato) and taro. A stubborn, annoying person was compared metaphorically to the bird, and was said to have pukeko ears (''taringa Pākura'', using ''Pākura'', another Māori word for the pukeko). They are known to steal eggs from each other and this is an indication of their character.


Māori mythology

In New Zealand, the pukeko is mentioned in the Māori myth "How the Kiwi lost her wings" in which several birds of the forest are asked to come down from the trees to eat the bugs on the ground and save the forest, but all give excuses except the kiwi who is willing to give up his colours and the ability to fly. The pukeko's excuse is that it looks too damp down there, and he does not want to get his feet wet. The pukeko is punished for his reluctance and told he must now live forever in the swamps. By one account, the pukeko is the spawn of Punga (the ancestor of sharks and reptiles – enemies of the people) but was claimed by relative (and high chief) Tawhaki. Tawhaki cut himself while cutting timber and so daubed the pukeko's forehead with his own blood to signify their bond. So the mischievous pukeko gets his character from Punga and his noble badge from Tawhaki.


Hunting and conservation

In New Zealand, they are protected as native gamebirds, meaning they may be hunted only under licence (from Fish and Game) during the duck shooting season. Sometimes there is an extended season on the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand. They are not generally hunted for food and most are not collected after the hunting session. They were sometimes eaten by Māori but were considered poor food, being sinewy and tough. In a written account given over 100 years ago, Māori were described as trapping pukeko (near Lake Taupo). They would choose a suitable place where pukeko were known to feed, and drive a series of stakes into the ground. These stakes were connected by a fine flax string. Hair-like nooses (made from
cabbage tree Cabbage tree is a common name for several plant species: * ''Andira inermis'', native to Central and South America * Various members of the genus ''Cordyline'' native to New Zealand. **''Cordyline australis'' (Cabbage tree) **''Cordyline banksii'' ...
fibre) were then dangled at the appropriate height, from the flax string, to catch pukeko as they fed after dusk, in the low light conditions. In New Zealand and Australia populations have expanded due to the creation of new artificial lakes and ponds. The subspecies endemic to Palau has been considered endangered as well,Taylor, P. B. (1996). "Family Rallidae (Rails, Gallinules and Coots)". ''In:'' del Hoyo, Josep; Elliott, Andrew & Sargatal, Jordi (eds.) : '' Handbook of Birds of the World Vol. 3 (Hoatzin to Auks)'': 197, Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. although a 2005 survey found that the subspecies, while potentially threatened, is at least now still common.


Life cycle

Nesting, breeding and rearing are as for the general species, see
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 ...
. In New Zealand they nest, typically well hidden in the middle of a clump of raupo, between August (end of winter) and March (start of autumn). Most eggs are laid between August and February with breeding reaching a peak in spring between September and December. New Zealand pukeko are joint-nesters and multiple females will lay their eggs in the same nest. The recent development of a useful PCR-based genetic marker to determine the sex of Pukeko has revealed that there is no evidence of sex ratio bias in hatching-order. Patterns of growth, survivorship and adult dominance in this species is therefore attributed to hatching order rather than offspring sex


Roadside behaviour

Birds are often seen singly, or in groups of two to three, foraging for food beside motorways or roadside ditches, and collecting grit. A study showed that the preferred grit colour is red (followed by yellow and lastly blue) even though red grit is less common.Clare Washington (Lincoln University) did a study in Christchurch – found in ASSAB 2000 27th annual conference
Roadkill Roadkill is an animal or animals that have been struck and killed by drivers of motor vehicles on highways. Wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVC) have increasingly been the topic of academic research to understand the causes, and how it can be mi ...
is a cause of mortality.


References


External links


Pukeko
at New Zealand Birds

Walter Lawry Buller, 1888, London {{Taxonbar, from1=Q27074640
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 ...
Birds of Australia Birds of the Maluku Islands Birds of New Guinea Birds of New Zealand
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 ...
Taxa named by Coenraad Jacob Temminck