Velvey Asity video

Laughing Moorhens

So, Moorhens then. A common bird across the world, but are they all the same 'species'? Martin Garners book "Frontiers in Birding" has a chapter all about sorting out Moorhens from the States. However, he only mentions that cachinnans (or Laughing Moorhen in the book) has a range from North America down to Mexico and Central America, Bermuda and the West Indes, with a winter range sporaically to South America If this is true what are the birds breeding throughout South America - are they cachinnans too? (I will have to look this up.)

These images are of some Moorhens at REGUA in the Atlantic rainforests of Brazil. They have a deeper voice, look a little bigger and also have a squarer top to their sheild:

And this one is from Madagascar. Looks pretty similar to me, with the same shaped sheild. Unfortunately I never noticed if the call was deeper on these birds:

Bouncy, bouncy!

A Verreaux's Sifaka moving along a trail at Berenty, Madagascar.