Your binoculars scan the marsh looking for wildlife. Duck (perhaps a Mallard?), duck (wait, maybe a Wood Duck?), goose. No, wait! You adjust your binoculars. Hmmmm. Looks like a duck, it’s swimming like a duck, but is it really a duck? Maybe it’s something more unique, like a Pied-billed Grebe or an American Coot, or perhaps even a Gallinule?
Gallinule species and American Coots look like ducks and swim like ducks, but each of these species has characteristics that are very different from ducks. This is especially true if you look at their feet and their bills.
For example, instead of the webbed feet we think of with ducks, the feet of American Coots look unlike other water birds. In fact, the word bizarre might come to mind when you see them. They have large feet with long toes comprised of fleshy lobes. These might look strange, yet these feet are an advantage to the coot as they help him kick as he swims. American Coots spend time on the ground and when they do, the lobes on their feet conveniently fold back.
Coots also use these “bizarre” dinosaur-like feet to assist them with take-off when they need to fly. Their feet help them to run across water since they need a long, running start to take off.
Common Gallinules also swim like ducks, but their feet are not webbed like a duck, nor do they have lobes like an American Coot. They have interesting long toes and long legs, which enable this species to walk on floating vegetation like water lilies. Even without webbed feet, the Common Gallinule is a good swimmer.
These marsh birds are gray with a red shield above the bill and a red bill with a yellow tip. The colorful bill is reminiscent of Halloween candy corn. They can be found in marshes, ponds, and lakes from parts of North America, south through Central America, and in areas of South America down to Chile. Gallinules can be raucously noisy; even sounding like a chicken at times. As they walk on vegetation and swim, you can find them associating with American Coots. In the winter, it’s not uncommon to find these two species gathered together in the water in large rafts sometimes containing a thousand birds. Per birdcare.com, the definition of a raft is “a closely-packed flock of birds on water”.
But the colorful bill of the Gallinule makes them easy to differentiate from a Coot, which has a white bill and a ring of black near the tip. And instead of having a red shield above the bill, theirs is a creamy white shield. If you do see an American Coot, be sure to take note of their beautiful red eye.
In some areas of Florida, you can find another Gallinule species called the Purple Gallinule. The bill of this bird is similar to the Common Gallinule, but it has a baby-blue shield above the bill. If you see one of these in the sunlight, it might remind you of the colors of the Painted Bunting. Cornell Lab of Ornithology says they are “one of the most vividly colored birds in all of North America. Purple Gallinules combine cherry red, sky blue, moss green, aquamarine, indigo, violet, and school-bus yellow.” They are found in the same habitats as coots and other gallinules, and they are also able to walk on lily pads and other vegetation. Both species of gallinules breed in parts of Florida.
As always, be respectful around all wildlife. Please give them the space they need; use binoculars and zoom lenses to get a better look or photo. For more information about birds, visit allaboutbirds.com.