Dani--It's your call.

W

Worth Mathewson

Active member
All the best on your purple swamphen! You had me going for a minute. I was drawing a total blank on the bird, and was puzzled when I checked my Birds of Mexico and Central America guide book and the species wasn't listed. I was just guessing it was a species moving northward like the tree ducks. Then a faint bell went off as I looked at your photographs again. Your bird sure looked like a pukeko. And when I pulled it up on Wikipedia it was very close. I found that there are about 13 races of purple swamphens. The race found in New Zealand and Australia is MELANOTES, and in NZ called the pukeko.
I lived in NZ for a year in the early 1970s, and shot a number of pukeko. Mainly I was shooting them for the feathers. There is a type of crawfish in NZ that is deep blue, brown trout love them, and the dark feathers of the pukeko made killer flies. I did eat some and they were ok, but not something one would worry about not getting second helpings of.
Now, I will leave it entirely up to you to make the call. According to Wikipedia the race you shot is POLIOCEPHALUS. If I read correctly, it is a little larger than the pukekos I shot. But splitting the races aside, the two are basically the same bird. I will be interested to learn if you feel I now have two birds to go on my list, or if my pukeko can be counted, and I am back to just the snow partridge.
All the best in 2011. I certainly enjoy your posts. I think you have gone a long ways in filling the void when Dave Parks stopped posting. Worth
 
This is complicated but worthy of note. Swamphens are protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act because they are native in some Pacific Island territories covered by international treaty. However the are not native to North America so Federal protection has been lifted for them anywhere in North America. Florida has developed a swamphen control plan that allows for the control of them. See the attached notice.

http://www.federalregister.gov/arti...tory-bird-permits-control-of-purple-swamphens
 
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From the FLORIDA FIELD NATURALIST (emphasis added):


Interactions with other species.—In their yard Kevin and Kim
Schnitzius have observed interactions between swamphens and three
other bird species. When bird seed is scattered on the ground, several
species rush in to feed. On a few occasions during these “feeding frenzies,”
Purple Swamphens have been observed to push away and peck
at Muscovy Ducks (Cairina moschata). On another occasion a
swamphen ended a battle between two American Coots (Fulica americana)
by striking the coots with one of its feet. And on 29 March 1999
a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) was observed picking up a small
swamphen chick and flying off with it in its bill.



http://www.fosbirds.org/FFN/PDFs/FFNv28n1p1-11Pranty.pdf
 
Kris, Yes, I got both the chachalaca and the white-tipped dove along the Rio Grande. Took two trips down to Texas. I think I was just lucky to get the chachalaca, and hunted for three hard days to get it. It turned out to be a bird I wouldn't exactly want to hunt again. Best, Worth
 
Worth-

You said that you wanted to shoot all of North America's LEGAL gamebirds and I just assumed that you meant that you wanted to do that in America. It's your list so I guess that makes if your call and not mine if the Pokeko counts, but that is pretty cool that you've shot a similar species in New Zealand.


Have a great 2011

Dani
 
Brad-

I received a special permit from USFWS to take the Purple Swamphen on specific properties for specific hunt dates.

Dani
 
Dani, I hope I was not interpreted as implying that you didn't have a permit. I was trying to explain what was going on.
 
Cas, i see the orthopedist next week--Man, this past ten or so days have sucked, bug time--Just constand throbbing, and i am sick of meds!
Want this thing repaired-He will be informed that i missed an ENTIRE waterfowl season , and i have no intention of missing Argentina!
Good to hear that some gaddie3s finally showed up--Man, they are really late this year.
 
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