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  1. Species
  2. ›
  3. Rallidae
  4. ›
  5. Hypotaenidia
  6. ›
  7. Lord Howe Woodhen
Lord Howe Woodhen
Photo · (c) ian_mcallan, some rights reserved (CC BY)

BirdUp · Species

Lord Howe Woodhen

Hypotaenidia sylvestris(Sclater, PL, 1870)

Updated 21 March 2026

Conservation status: VulnerableOrigin: Endemic
Order
GRUIFORMES
Family
Rallidae
Genus
Hypotaenidia

At a glance

The Lord Howe Woodhen is a large bird, about 32–42 cm long, listed as Vulnerable and endemic to Australia. It can be seen year-round.

Size
32–42 cm
Conservation status
Vulnerable
Origin
Endemic
Best seen
Year-round
Commonness
Rare
  • Identification
  • Where
  • When
  • Behaviour
  • Gallery

01 · Identification

How to tell it apart

What does a Lord Howe Woodhen look like?

The Lord Howe Woodhen is a large bird, about 32–42 cm long and weighing 330–780 g.

The Lord Howe woodhen also known as the Lord Howe Island woodhen, Lord Howe wood rail, Lord Howe rail or Lord Howe Island rail, is a flightless bird of the rail family, Rallidae. It is endemic to Lord Howe Island off the Australian coast. It is currently classified as endangered by the IUCN. The species was formerly placed in the genus Gallirallus.

Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Field specs

Length
32–42 cm
Weight
330–780 g

Measurements · avonet · CC BY 4.0

03 · When

When to look

When can you see a Lord Howe Woodhen?

The Lord Howe Woodhen is present across its Australian range year-round, so it can be seen in any month.

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec

05 · Behaviour

Habits and haunts

What does a Lord Howe Woodhen eat?

The Lord Howe Woodhen feeds on seeds, foliage/herbs, terrestrial invertebrates and terrestrial vertebrates, usually foraging in pairs or flocks or alone.

06 · Gallery

Plumage up close

4 photos

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02 · Where

Where to find it

Where does the Lord Howe Woodhen live in Australia?

The Lord Howe Woodhen is endemic to Australia, recorded across 2 of Australia’s bioregions.

BreedingLord Howe I. (far east of Australia)

Distribution from BirdUp Australia community data

Legend

  • Breeding

1 region recorded