Porphyrio porphyrio (Linnaeus, 1758).

Length 40-50 cm. This is a large bird that is easily identified by its massive triangular red bill, red legs, and long slender toes. Plumage is predominantly blue to violet, although in the Egyptian race the bird is bronze-green on the back; the under-tail coverts are white. The Purple Gallinule lives in reed swamps bordering ponds, lakes, and rivers. It is omnivorous; feeds on young reed shoots and the leaves, flowers, seeds, and roots of aquatic and semi-aquatic plants together with mollusks and small crabs. The nest is built in the shallow water on a platform of vegetation. Three to five eggs are laid and incubated for 23-27 days by both parents. It is a resident breeder in the Nile Valley and Delta.