If you have ever been to a body of water in a rural or urban area, then you have probably seen a coot.
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They are very common in our local area and over the winter months can congregate in flocks of many hundreds of birds.
They are found in Europe and Asia as well as Australia, although the Australian birds have different dietary habits.
They are distinguished by their sooty black plumage and the distinctive white bill and frontal shield and a bright red eye.
Both sexes look the same, although the females have a narrower frontal shield.
Coot are often seen, “running across the surface of the water” as they take off.
This feat is made possible by the flattened lobes on their toes which give their feet a weird appearance.
The birds take off from the water with their feet pattering on the surface, until they are airborne.
These lobes also help to distribute body weight so that the birds can walk on floating water plants.
In Australia, Coot are almost entirely vegetarian, with the addition to their diet of a few worms and fish.
They require submerged aquatic vegetation and mats of floating waterweed to survive and obtain most of their food by diving.
They can stay under water for up to 20 seconds and pluck the stems of emergent water plants, bringing them to the surface to eat.
They also graze on land and on the water surface.
Eurasian Coot breed whenever the conditions are favourable and have two broods a year.
Nests are built on a floating raft of vegetation or on logs or tree stumps surrounded by water.
Pairs establish and maintain a territory aggressively and often take over the nests of ducks or grebes, pushing the eggs into the water.
Up to nine speckled eggs are laid and the tiny, fluffy black chicks, leave the nest a few days after hatching
On occasions a male will pair with two females who both lay their eggs in the same nest.
Unfortunately, only a few of the chicks survive as they are predated by herons and gulls.
These birds will often fly great distances to find new feeding grounds and it is thought they do so at night, as they are not seen flying during the day.
