Coot
Encyclopedia
Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family
Rallidae
. They constitute the genus Fulica. Coots have predominantly black plumage
, and, unlike many of the rails, they are usually easy to see, often swimming in open water. They are close relatives of the moorhen
.
The greatest species variety is in South America, and it is likely that the genus originated there. They are common in Europe and North America.
They have prominent frontal shields or other decoration on the forehead, and coloured bills, and many, but not all, have white on the under tail. Like other rails, they have lobed toes. The featherless shield gave rise to the expression "as bald as a coot", which the Oxford English Dictionary cites in use as early as 1430. A group of coots may be referred to as a covert.
They tend to have short, rounded wings and are weak fliers, although northern species are nevertheless capable of covering long distances; the American Coot
has reached Britain and Ireland on rare occasions. Those species that migrate
do so at night.
Coots can walk and run vigorously on strong legs, and have long toes that are well adapted to soft, uneven surfaces.
These birds are omnivorous, taking mainly plant material, but also small animals and eggs
. They are aggressively territorial during the breeding season, but are otherwise often found in sizeable flocks on the shallow vegetated lakes they prefer. A flock of coots is known in the US as a cover.
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Rallidae
Rallidae
The rails, or Rallidae, are a large cosmopolitan family of small to medium-sized birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity and the family also includes the crakes, coots, and gallinules...
. They constitute the genus Fulica. Coots have predominantly black plumage
Feather
Feathers are one of the epidermal growths that form the distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on birds and some non-avian theropod dinosaurs. They are considered the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates, and indeed a premier example of a complex evolutionary novelty. They...
, and, unlike many of the rails, they are usually easy to see, often swimming in open water. They are close relatives of the moorhen
Moorhen
Moorhens, sometimes called marsh hens, are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family Rallidae. They constitute the genus Gallinula....
.
The greatest species variety is in South America, and it is likely that the genus originated there. They are common in Europe and North America.
They have prominent frontal shields or other decoration on the forehead, and coloured bills, and many, but not all, have white on the under tail. Like other rails, they have lobed toes. The featherless shield gave rise to the expression "as bald as a coot", which the Oxford English Dictionary cites in use as early as 1430. A group of coots may be referred to as a covert.
They tend to have short, rounded wings and are weak fliers, although northern species are nevertheless capable of covering long distances; the American Coot
American Coot
The American Coot is a bird of the family Rallidae, inhabiting wetlands and open water bodies. Measuring in length and across the wings, adults have a short thick white bill and white frontal shield, which usually has a reddish-brown spot near the top of the bill between the eyes...
has reached Britain and Ireland on rare occasions. Those species that migrate
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
do so at night.
Coots can walk and run vigorously on strong legs, and have long toes that are well adapted to soft, uneven surfaces.
These birds are omnivorous, taking mainly plant material, but also small animals and eggs
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
. They are aggressively territorial during the breeding season, but are otherwise often found in sizeable flocks on the shallow vegetated lakes they prefer. A flock of coots is known in the US as a cover.
Species in taxonomic order
- Fulica cristata GmelinJohann Friedrich GmelinJohann Friedrich Gmelin was a German naturalist, botanist, entomologist, herpetologist and malacologist.- Education :Johann Friedrich Gmelin was born as the eldest son of Philipp Friedrich Gmelin in 1748 in Tübingen...
, 1789 - Red-knobbed CootRed-knobbed CootThe Red-knobbed Coot or Crested Coot, , is a member of the rail and crake bird family, the Rallidae.It is a resident breeder across much of Africa and in southernmost Spain on freshwater lakes and ponds. It builds a nest of dead reeds near the water's edge or more commonly afloat, laying about 8...
(Africa, Iberian Peninsula) - Fulica atra LinnaeusCarolus LinnaeusCarl Linnaeus , also known after his ennoblement as , was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology...
, 1758 - Eurasian CootEurasian CootThe Eurasian Coot, Fulica atra, also known as Coot, is a member of the rail and crake bird family, the Rallidae. The Australian subspecies is known as the Australian Coot.-Distribution:...
or Common Coot - Fulica alai PealeTitian PealeTitian Ramsay Peale was a noted American artist, naturalist, entomologist and photographer. He was the sixteenth child and youngest son of noted American naturalist Charles Willson Peale.-Biography:...
, 1848 - Hawaiian CootHawaiian CootThe Hawaiian Coot or alae keokeo is a species of bird in the rail family, Rallidae, that is endemic to Hawaii....
or Alae keokeo - Fulica americana GmelinJohann Friedrich GmelinJohann Friedrich Gmelin was a German naturalist, botanist, entomologist, herpetologist and malacologist.- Education :Johann Friedrich Gmelin was born as the eldest son of Philipp Friedrich Gmelin in 1748 in Tübingen...
, 1789 - American CootAmerican CootThe American Coot is a bird of the family Rallidae, inhabiting wetlands and open water bodies. Measuring in length and across the wings, adults have a short thick white bill and white frontal shield, which usually has a reddish-brown spot near the top of the bill between the eyes... - Fulica caribaea Ridgway, 1884 - Caribbean CootCaribbean CootThe Caribbean Coot is a large waterbird of the family Rallidae, which is a resident breeder in the Caribbean and parts of Venezuela. Several alleged sightings have occurred in North America, but these cannot be authenticated since some American Coots lack red knobs on the frontal shield of the bill...
- Fulica leucoptera VieillotLouis Jean Pierre VieillotLouis Jean Pierre Vieillot was a French ornithologist.Vieillot described a large number of birds for the first time, especially those he encountered during the time he spent in the West Indies and North America, and 26 genera established by him are still in use...
, 1817 - White-winged CootWhite-winged CootThe White-winged Coot is a species of bird in the Rallidae family. At in length, it is a mid-sized coot. It is found in swamps and at lakes in southern South America, including the Falkland Islands, ranging as far north as Bolivia and southern Brazil...
(Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Falkland Islands, Paraguay, Uruguay) - Fulica ardesiaca TschudiJohann Jakob von TschudiJohann Jakob von Tschudi was a Swiss naturalist and explorer.Tschudi was born in Glarus, and studied natural sciences and medicine at the universities of Neuchâtel, Leiden and Paris. In 1838 he travelled to Peru, where he remained for five years exploring and collecting plants in the Andes...
, 1843 - Slate-coloured CootSlate-coloured CootThe Slate-coloured Coot or Andean Coot is a species of bird in the Rallidae family.It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.Its natural habitats are swamps and freshwater lakes.-References:...
(Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru) - Fulica armillata VieillotLouis Jean Pierre VieillotLouis Jean Pierre Vieillot was a French ornithologist.Vieillot described a large number of birds for the first time, especially those he encountered during the time he spent in the West Indies and North America, and 26 genera established by him are still in use...
, 1817 - Red-gartered CootRed-gartered CootThe Red-gartered Coot is a species of bird in the Rallidae family. At in length, it is a fairly large species of coot....
(Argentina, southern Brazil,Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay) - Fulica rufifrons Philppi & Landbeck, 1861 - Red-fronted CootRed-fronted CootThe Red-fronted Coot is a species of bird in the Rallidae family. At , it is a mid-sized species of coot.It is found in Argentina, southern Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, southern Peru and Uruguay. There are also records from Bolivia and the Falkland Islands.Its natural habitat is swamps and...
(Argentina, southern Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, southern Peru, Uruguay) - Fulica gigantea EydouxJoseph Fortuné Théodore EydouxJoseph Fortuné Théodore Eydoux Joseph Fortuné Théodore Eydoux Joseph Fortuné Théodore Eydoux (1802 - 1841 was a French naturalist.Eydoux and Louis François Auguste Souleyet were surgeon naturalists on the expedition ship "La Favorite" which made a circumnavigation in 1830-32 captained by Cyrille...
& Souleyet, 1841 - Giant CootGiant CootThe Giant Coot is a species of bird found at lakes in the altiplano from central Peru, through western Bolivia, to north-eastern Chile and extreme north-western Argentina. With a total length of 48–64 cm , it is the second largest extant member of the Rallidae family, after the Takahe, and...
(Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Peru) - Fulica cornuta BonaparteCharles Lucien BonaparteCharles Lucien Jules Laurent Bonaparte, 2nd Prince of Canino and Musignano was a French naturalist and ornithologist.-Biography:...
, 1853 - Horned CootHorned CootThe Horned Coot is a species of bird found at lakes in the altiplano of north-western Argentina, south-western Bolivia, and north-eastern Chile. It is almost entirely restricted to altitudes of 3000-5200 m.a.s.l., but has occasionally been recorded at lower altitudes...
(Argentina, Bolivia, Chile) - Fulica newtoni Milne-EdwardsAlphonse Milne-EdwardsAlphonse Milne-Edwards was a French mammalologist, ornithologist and carcinologist. He was English in origin, the son of Henri Milne-Edwards and grandson of Bryan Edwards, a Jamaican planter who settled at Bruges .Milne-Edwards obtained a medical degree in 1859 and became assistant to his father...
, 1867 - Mascarene CootMascarene CootThe Mascarene Coot is an extinct species of coot that inhabited the Mascarene islands of Mauritius and Réunion. Long known from subfossil bones found on the former island, but only assumed from descriptions to also have been present on the latter, remains have more recently been found on Réunion...
(extinct, c.1700) - Fulica chathamensis - Chatham Coot (prehistoricLate Quaternary prehistoric birdsPrehistoric birds are various taxa of birds that became extinct before recorded history, or more precisely, before they could be studied alive by bird scientists...
) - Fulica prisca Hamilton, 1893 - New Zealand Coot (prehistoric)
- Fulica infelix BrodkorbPierce BrodkorbPierce Brodkorb , also stated as William Pierce Brodkorb, was an American ornithologist and paleontologist....
, 1961 (fossil: Early PliocenePlioceneThe Pliocene Epoch is the period in the geologic timescale that extends from 5.332 million to 2.588 million years before present. It is the second and youngest epoch of the Neogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Pliocene follows the Miocene Epoch and is followed by the Pleistocene Epoch...
of JunturaJuntura, OregonJuntura is an unincorporated community in Malheur County, Oregon, United States on U.S. Route 20. The word juntura is Spanish for "juncture", and the community was named for its proximity to the confluence of the Malheur River with its north fork. The name was probably selected by local settler B. L...
, Malheur CountyMalheur County, OregonMalheur County is a county located in the southeast corner of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is included in the eight-county definition of Eastern Oregon. Most of the county observes the Mountain Time Zone, although the southern quarter of the county observes the Pacific Time Zone along with the...
, Oregon, USA) - Fulica shufeldti (fossil: PleistocenePleistoceneThe Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
of North America) - possibly a subspecies of Fulica americana; formerly F. minor
External links
- Coot videos on the Internet Bird Collection