The American Coot is a plump, chickenlike bird with a rounded head and a sloping bill. Their tiny tail, short wings, and large feet are visible on the rare occasions they take flight.

The American coot is a migratory bird that occupies most of North America. It lives in the Pacific and southwestern United States and Mexico year-round and occupies more northeastern regions during the summer breeding season.

Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family, Rallidae. They constitute the genus Fulica, the name being the Latin term for "coot". Coots have predominantly black plumage, and—unlike many rails—they are usually easy to see, often swimming in open water.

Coots are tough, adaptable waterbirds. Although they are related to the secretive rails, they swim in the open like ducks and walk about on shore, making themselves at home on golf courses and city park ponds.

You can find American Coots by scanning lakes and ponds for a small, all-black bird with a bright white bill. They may be at the edges, among vegetation, or out in open water; you may even see them walking around (not waddling) on land on their fairly long, yellow-green legs.

Learn more about what makes these birds unique below. Waterworks – Coots differ from other members of the rail family in their behavior in the water. Most rails live in shallow waters and wade along the edges in search of food, but Coots swim through the water like a duck or a goose.

Aug 13, 2018 · With a duck-ish head, a body shaped like a chicken, and a pointy beak to match, the American Coot looks like the most impractical mash-up of birds—and that’s just in the water. On land, you can see another part of its wacky appearance: those feet.

Plump, chicken-like bird that acts like a duck. Gray overall with blacker head and white bill. Tiny tail and short wings. Feet are large, yellow-green, and oddly lobed. Head jerks back and forth when swimming. Forages for aquatic vegetation anywhere with water: ponds, city parks, marshes, reservoirs, lakes, ditches, and saltmarshes.

Nov 5, 2015 · A close look at a coot—that small head, those scrawny legs—reveals a different kind of bird entirely. Their dark bodies and white faces are common sights in nearly any open water across the continent, and they often mix with ducks.

A familiar black bird of our lakes, ponds and rivers, the coot is widespread; look out for its large and untidy-looking nest on the water in spring. The coot can be distinguished from the similar Moorhen by its white beak and 'shield', and its entirely black body.