Purple Gallinule

The purple Gallinule is a water-hen that makes a floating nest.  They are very vulnerable to attack from dogs, cats, rats and crows.

Numbers have dived and some species have become extinct.  The main reason for this is that some of the gallinule pairs are very bad at building and camouflaging their nests.  A man can see their nest from the side of the pond let alone a domestic cat. 

The birds that do survive have managed to tuck their nests away from prying eyes and have been diligent in camouflaging it.

They eat meat and vegetables which is why they have survived in some form for millions of years.  They can easily change their food source when one type of food suddenly becomes unavailable.

They are quite pretty with a bright blue and red face, yellow bill and a black body.