That is low tide.
I think it’s cultural, my experience of North American toilets is the luxury of so much water, that rises majestically before cleanly taking it all away. German/ Austrian toilets have an ‘inspection plate’ (I’ve been told from eating so much meat, there was/ is a need to check for parasites). Mediterranean toilets that can’t handle loo paper, so there is a delightful bin next to the bog. The odd combo Japanese urinal/ w.c., with the long handles so that it’s hard to work out which way you face it.
My favourite ever toilet was in Lisbon; a normal w.c but instead of a press flush it had a large numbered dial i.e. "that curry last night was an ‘eight’ ".