Moorhen Call MP3s
Authentic moorhen vocalizations recorded for wetland enthusiasts, from waterside callers to birders confirming an ID.
Also known as
Recordings (3)
About this species
Around 33 cm in length, the Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus) is a secretive member of the rail family (Rallidae): slaty-black with a red bill tipped yellow and a white flank-stripe, tail constantly flicking. It skulks along reedy ponds, ditches and overgrown waterways.
It gives a sudden, bubbling 'kurr-uk' and a range of clucking notes. It gleans seeds, water plants, snails and insects from the water's edge. It swims with head bobbing and tail flicking, dashing to cover at any alarm. It haunts the reedbeds and marshes of Greece and the wider Mediterranean, threading through cover unseen.
Legal use
The Moorhen's legal status is genuinely mixed: it is listed under Annex II (Part B) of the EU Birds Directive, meaning individual member states decide whether to permit hunting, and several do so under limited seasons, while Great Britain also classes it as quarry with a season that follows the general wildfowling calendar (though it is shot far less than in the past). In the US, the common gallinule is a federally regulated migratory gamebird that is legal quarry in states such as Florida and Texas but has no open season in others, such as Maryland. Given this patchwork, do not assume the moorhen is either freely huntable or fully protected wherever you are. Check our full country-by-country disclaimer before using this call for hunting purposes.