As the early morning sun reflected on the water in pale shades of pink and blue last Friday at Huntley Meadows Park, this American Coot (Fulica americana) looked unusually happy as he foraged in the vegetation, occasionally glancing in my direction with a smile on his face.
It must have been a young coot—we all know that old coots are crotchety and don’t like to be bothered by others.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
They’re such delights. At one of the marinas where I work, they’re flocking up, getting ready to migrate. I think some already are gone. I always enjoy seeing photos of them foraging, and the cute little patches on the rear end are a plus.
Coots are definitely a little odd. I remember thinking that they were a species of ducks when I first encountered them, but later learned that they are more closely related to Sandhill Cranes than to ducks.
Great commentary, Mike! It made me laugh out loud :).
There is something about the word “coot” that makes me smile every time I say it. I often do stream-of-consciousness postings like this one where I never quite know where I will end up.
Thanks for sharing! 👍 enjoyed the post📷
Thanks, Erin.
Ah yes, beware the crotchety coots! Well done.
Nice one Mike!
He certainly found a mouthful. I watched a mallard do the same today and it looked like he was chewing his food. I never knew that ducks chewed, or that they even could.
There is so much about bird behavior that I don’t know. That’s one of the reasons why I like to capture all kinds of behavior–I never know what is “normal.”