Finfoots

The Heliornithidae, commonly known as finfoots, are a small family of tropical birds which include three species each in its own genus. Resembling rails with long necks, slender bodies, broad tails, and sharp bills, finfoots have unique webbed lobes on their feet and a variety of calls which they use infrequently. These colorful-legged birds thrive in tropical habitats near water and cover, from coastlines to mountain streams. They are secretive, territorial, and do not typically migrate, but can colonize new suitable areas. Finfoots have a diverse diet that includes insects, mollusks, crustaceans, and sometimes plant material, feeding at the water's surface rather than diving. They breed after the wet season, exhibiting changes in appearance and variations in breeding behavior, with nest-building and incubation roles differing across species. Their nests are generally untidy structures suspended over water. The three species, the African finfoot in tropical African streams, the masked finfoot in parts of India and Southeast Asia, and the sungrebe in tropical Central and South America, remain elusive with many aspects of their biology still undiscovered.