Feeding. Young birds are browner and lack the red shield. Moorhens lay up to 21 smooth and glossy, greyish-white eggs with reddish-brown markings. Its diet is based on the insects, spiders, snails, worms, fish, fruit, berries and seed. Moorhens lay many eggs at a time, however, eggs and chicks are often preyed upon by gulls, herons, other water birds, foxes and cats. Where the male moorhen will sit on the eggs, the female moorhen will defend the nest site and you may occasionally see females fighting. What do moorhens eat? Similar Images . The term “hen” in this case refers to the bird in general and not specifically a female bird. Tarsus and foot lengths were the most influential variables in gender discrimination. Moorhen is an omnivore. We also utilized a discriminant analysis of seven morphological measures to investigate whether birds can be sexed on the basis of biometry. Add to Likebox #106953693 - Moorhen, reeds and reflections in the water of a lake. Moorhen is social birds. The name “moorhen” refers to both male and female birds, just like the name “ladybug” describes both males and females of that species. It has dark plumage apart from the white undertail, yellow legs, and a red frontal shield. Its feet have distinctive lobed flaps of skin on the toes which act in the same way as webbed feet when swimming. Your Female Common Moorhen stock images are ready. Moorhens are omnivorous and eat a lot of different kinds of foods. Perhaps this is why moorhens can have many broods per year. Add to Likebox #132009928 - A view of a Moorhen in the wild. #86322587 - Moorhen Female. Male and female moorhens build their saucer-shaped nests from twigs, coarse stems and grass lined with softer materials. One interesting behaviour that might be unique to … It lives in the flocks of 15 to 30 birds outside the mating season. The Сommon moorhen is a ground-dwelling water bird ерфе is distributed across Europe, Asia, and Africa. Similar Images . Moorhen is also known as "swamp chicken" because of the chicken-like shape and size of the body. However, only 13 females and 10 males … Download all free or royalty-free photos and vectors. Both sexes incubate the eggs for up to 19-22 days and chicks fledge at 42-49 days. The per cent difference in nuclear content between male and female moorhens was among the highest values reported for birds. All-black and larger than its cousin, the moorhen, the Eurasian coot has a distinctive white beak and 'shield' above the beak which earns it the title 'bald'. Moorhens are generally monogamous and pair bonds can last for several years. Similar Images . It patters noisily over the water before taking off and can be very aggressive towards others. The male and female look similar, although the female is usually slightly larger.