Watercock

The watercock is a large rail and the only member of its genus. Adult males are about 43cm long and 476–650g, with mainly black-grey plumage and a red bill, legs, extended frontal shield and a horn-like crest. Females are smaller, about 36cm and 298–434g, dark brown above and paler below with darker streaks and bars, a yellow bill and green legs. Young males are buff and darken as they mature. Although the male looks like a moorhen, it belongs to a mainly tropical Asian group of rails (Wikipedia, general species account).

It breeds in swamps and is mainly a permanent resident. It is quite secretive but is sometimes seen in the open, and it is noisy, especially at dawn and dusk, with a loud, gulping call. It probes mud and shallow water and picks food by sight, foraging on the ground for insects, small fish and seeds. The nest is placed on dry ground in marsh vegetation and holds three to six eggs. SoIB 2023 lists it as resident in India with movements within the country, finds its current trend stable, and rates it a Low conservation priority (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).