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Nature Done Wright
Incorporating the Celery Farm and Screech Owl Companion blogs
October 31, 2007
Coots du jour
In case you were wondering…
Those goofy little black swimmers seen in abundance at the Celery Farm these days are coots.
Some 50 were reported there yesterday.
These birds have whitish bills, whitish rumps, and heads 
that bob forward and back in pied-billed grebe-like fashion.
Many might think these birds are part of the duck tribe, but they would be mistaken.
Not only are these swimmers actually related to moorhens, rails, limpkins and gallinules, but they lack the webbed feet of their cousin canards.
Riddle: These birds are officially called American coots. Eight American Coots were seen in Blakeney, England, a few years ago, during a Big Sit. But they weren’t counted. Why?
More info on coots: http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/American_Coot.html
6 comments
-
Mr. W,
I’m sorry to inform you that you didn’t really answer the riddle correctly. 🙂 -
Mr. Wright,
Our friends across the pond have a point. A prize would be great! Should I just drop by and pick it up? Or will there be some sort of grand presentation ceremony? Like, say, the “A-Coot-emy Awards”? -
I was hoping there would be some kind of prize, for solving the riddle.as there was a sighting of anglo-american coots,very rare indeed.
-
Tally ho!
-
Spoken like a true coot.
Actually, these coots were coots in name only. I was one of eight Fyke Nature Associationers who did a big sit in Blakeney and called our team the American Coots.
Jim W. -
Mr. Wright:
If the birds in England weren’t counted, it must be because they were “released birds,” and not native?
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6 comments
jim wright
Mr. W,
I’m sorry to inform you that you didn’t really answer the riddle correctly. 🙂
John W.
Mr. Wright,
Our friends across the pond have a point. A prize would be great! Should I just drop by and pick it up? Or will there be some sort of grand presentation ceremony? Like, say, the “A-Coot-emy Awards”?
chris and carol, old england
I was hoping there would be some kind of prize, for solving the riddle.as there was a sighting of anglo-american coots,very rare indeed.
John W.
Tally ho!
jim wright
Spoken like a true coot.
Actually, these coots were coots in name only. I was one of eight Fyke Nature Associationers who did a big sit in Blakeney and called our team the American Coots.
Jim W.
John W.
Mr. Wright:
If the birds in England weren’t counted, it must be because they were “released birds,” and not native?