As some might have noticed – I am cycling through the two days in the Camargue. Another highlight from day one was this bird, for which I found three different names in three sources. The Merlin app calls it Western Swamphen, the Collins Bird Guide calls it Purple Swamphen, and a local book – Birds of the Camargue – calls it Purple Gallinule. Despite the respect I have for Collins and Merlin, I have chosen to go with the local name, not least because it is so much funnier. The photo was taken at our very first stop in the Camargue, in a challenging lighting situation – bright direct sunlight with additional reflected light from the shallow swamp.
Purple Gallinule
| Shutter Speed | 1250 sec |
| Aperture | f/7.1 |
| Focal Length | 600mm |
| ISO | 280 |
| Date | 14/08/2025 |
| Time | 14:35 |
| Location | Camargue, Provence, France |