`Alae `Ula Hawaiian Moorhen Diet

Swimming through the water, the 'Alae 'Ula are omnivorous which means they eat a variety of things. They feed on grasses, algae, small insects, and mollusks on and below the surface. They turn over leaves and eat the snails found on the leaves. As the 'Alae 'Ula feeds, it jerks its tail up and shows its white under feathers.

The 'Alae 'Ula can dive, to feed and escape from their predators. They often hide underwater with their head or bill hidden in plants. They hold on to the vegetation with their bills. The 'Alae 'Ula feed on plant material incuding the leaves and stems of submerged and floating plants like hydrillas, water lilies, their seeds, and bulrush. Animal foods include beetles, giant water scorpions, water striders, dragonfly larvae, grasshoppers, as well as earthworms, snails, spiders and small fish.