American Coot

Fulica americana

First photographed: January 31, 2026
First location: Colorado, United States
Conservation status: Least Concern

Female american coot in a marsh in Utah.

An evolving study

American Coot portfolio

This collection grows as I return to photograph new behavior, habitat, seasons, and stages of life.

An american coot walking on a frozen lake in January in Colorado

Female american coot with a newly hatched chick swimming together in Utah.

Juvenile american coot in a pond in Utah.

Female and juvenile american coot sharing vegetation in a marsh in Utah.

Natural history

Species at a glance

Fulica americana

Overview

The American Coot is a rail adapted for open water, where it swims like a duck but propels itself with lobed toes rather than webbed feet. Large flocks can gather on lakes and reservoirs outside the breeding season.

Identification

A plump charcoal-gray bird with a blacker head, white bill, red eye, and a small dark mark near the bill tip. In flight or while scrambling across water, white undertail patches and large lobed feet may be visible.

Range

Breeds from southern Canada through much of the United States and locally south through Mexico and Central America. Northern birds migrate to open water across the southern United States, Mexico, and the Caribbean.

Habitat

Freshwater ponds, marshes, lakes, reservoirs, and slow rivers with open water and emergent vegetation.

Diet

Mostly aquatic plants, algae, and seeds, along with insects, snails, small fish, tadpoles, and eggs when available.

Photography by Brittany Templin

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