The coot (Fulica atra) is a nicely rounded bird with a fairly short tail and a small, rounded head. In shape it resembles a hen, which is why it is also called the water hen. It is 36 to 42 cm long, its wings are relatively short, and it does not like to fly well either. Its body is ash-gray, and the head is black. The pinkish-white bill continues into a white fleshy shield on the forehead, from the darkness of the head only the red eye stands out. The coot swims well, as its long bluish-gray toes on the sides bear lobed skin flaps. While swimming it constantly tilts its head slightly. It also dives, but never stays underwater for long. When taking off from the water’s surface, the coot runs along the surface and, in doing so, splashes everything around. It is omnivorous, but the larger part of its diet consists of plant-based food. It loves green algae and the shoots of aquatic and marginal plants and their seeds. Whenever it spots a smaller animal, it does not hesitate, and thus various insects, slugs, leeches, spiders, small fish and fish eggs, tadpoles, and also young birds and their eggs quickly end up in its stomach.
The coot is a water bird that lives on large standing or slowly flowing bodies of water with a muddy bottom, in which aquatic plants are rooted. It prefers shallow lakes, where there are sufficiently deep parts where it can dive. It likes overgrown banks, because when frightened it would rather hide in dense vegetation than fly away. The coot is a territorial species, and the parents defend their territory with a nest against intruders. It builds a nest of decayed vegetation early in spring at the edge of the reed bed. The female lays about eight eggs in May or June. The young hatch about three weeks later and immediately swim away with their mother. The coot searches for food for itself and its young during the day, and with its calls it enlivens the nights on the lakes. In Slovenia the coot stays there year-round, only in very harsh winters does it move from its breeding range to bodies of water that have not frozen. In autumn the coots begin to gather into larger flocks and together they survive the winter.
Although it is hunted for food in some countries, the coot is a common bird and is not yet endangered. Another important threat is the loss of its habitat, as drying wetlands and the regulation and pollution of waterways alter the natural cycles and the appearance of the lakes and rivers that are the coot’s home.
