Eurasian Coot
Fulica atra
Also known as: Common Coot, Coot, European Coot, Black Coot
Habitat
Aquatic
Diet
PlantSeed
Active Time
Diurnal
Size
717 g
About This Species
Look for this dumpy waterbird on lakes, gravel pits and slow rivers, diving from the surface for weed and small invertebrates and often forming large rafts outside the breeding season. The white facial shield against an otherwise all-black body makes it easy to pick out even at distance. Numbers swell in winter as birds from further north arrive, and courtship chasing and aggressive territorial disputes are conspicuous on still mornings in early spring.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- A common and confiding species on most park lakes, so a good pair of binoculars from the bank is normally all that is needed rather than approaching closer.
- Avoid pushing birds off a nest platform or forcing a brood of chicks to scatter, since repeated disturbance during the breeding season can cause a pair to abandon.
- Feeding bread or approaching too closely with a dog off the lead are the two most common causes of unnecessary stress at popular sites.
LCAvesGruiformesRallidae
Seasonal Activity
5,396,729 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Gruiformes
- Family
- Rallidae
Traits
- Diet
- PlantSeed
- Foraging
- Aquatic
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Body mass
- 717 g
Photo
Wikimedia Commons / Wikimedia Commons
CC-BY-SA-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.