Australasian swamphen

Porphyrio melanotus

The Australasian swamphen (Porphyrio melanotus) is a bird found in Australia and New Zealand. Marshes, ponds and fields in Australia, New Zealand and nearby. It eats leaves and other plant parts, seeds and nuts and insects and other small invertebrates. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.

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Scientific name	Porphyrio melanotus
Region	Australia & Oceania
Found in	Australia and New Zealand

🏡 Where the Australasian swamphen lives

Marshes, ponds and fields in Australia, New Zealand and nearby.

🍽️ What it eats

🌿 Leaves & plants40%
🌰 Seeds & nuts30%
🐛 Insects & bugs10%
🐭 Mammals & birds10%
🦎 Reptiles & frogs10%

A rough guide to its diet over a year. Source: EltonTraits (Wilman et al. 2014).

Conservation status

LCNTVUENCREWEX

Least ConcernThere are plenty of these birds.

💡 It is called the pūkeko in New Zealand and has bright red legs and beak.

Hear the Australasian swamphen

Recorded by Tom Cooney (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), xeno-canto XC1104850. Trimmed to a few seconds.

Questions about the Australasian swamphen

Where does the Australasian swamphen live?

The Australasian swamphen lives in Australia and New Zealand. Marshes, ponds and fields in Australia, New Zealand and nearby.

What does the Australasian swamphen eat?

leaves and other plant parts (about 40%), seeds and nuts (about 30%), insects and other small invertebrates (about 10%), small mammals and birds (about 10%), reptiles and frogs (about 10%). These are rough shares of its diet over a year, from the EltonTraits database.

Is the Australasian swamphen endangered?

There are plenty of these birds. Its IUCN Red List category is Least Concern.

More birds from Australia & Oceania

Sources: IUCN Red List (via Wikidata), EltonTraits 1.0 (Wilman et al. 2014), GBIF sightings for countries, Wikipedia. Last updated 2026-10-19.