ML617252845

Observation details

Spotted a single Purple Swamp Hen on the edge of Ipai village, photos attached. It must have came from elsewhere on Tanna because we don't have a known population around here. Unfortunately later on village boys spotted it and tried to capture it, which resulted to the death of the bird. This is the first bird I see on Tanna since May 2015 (just after the Cyclone Pam). In 2021 a friend of mine from Southwest Tanna claimed he may have heard one near his village, but otherwise there are very few instances of recent sightings of this bird. Still, this instance shows there is still a population of Purple Swamphens on Tanna.