Coot is the name of nine kinds of marsh birds in the rail family. Coots are sometimes called mud hens or marsh hens.
Coots have slate-gray feathers, and they resemble ducks. They range in size from about 13 to 23 inches (33 to 58 centimeters) long. Coots have short, rounded wings and a white or yellow bill that is shaped like a chicken’s bill. Fleshy, paddlelike flaps on their toes help them swim.
Coots live all over the world except the polar regions. The American coot is found from southern Canada to South America. The European coot, a species common in Europe and Asia, occasionally strays to Newfoundland and Labrador.
Most coots live in freshwater marshes. They build floating nests from dead plants. The female usually lays 9 or 10 eggs. Coots feed chiefly on algae and the seeds, leaves, and roots of other water plants. They also eat snails, worms, water insects, small fish, and tadpoles. Coots find their food on the surface of the water and on the ground, or they dive underwater to obtain it. Other birds often steal food that coots have obtained by diving.
Loading the player...American coot
