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Eurasian Coot

Fulica atra

Least Concern (IUCN Red List)Rails, Gallinules, and Coots
Eurasian Coot, photographed by Alexis Lours

Photo: Alexis Lours · Wikimedia · CC-BY 4.0 (licence)

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Call and song

About the Eurasian Coot

Distinctive stocky waterbird. Adult is dark gray overall with a white bill and forehead shield. Immature has a pale breast and a duller bill that becomes brighter white with age. When walking on shore, note big feet with lobed toes. Inhabits both freshwater and brackish marshes, lakeshores, and riverways; occasionally on saltwater. Breeding pairs aggressively territorial but nonbreeding flocks can number in hundreds. Unmistakable throughout much of range, but compare with very similar Red-knobbed Coot in areas of overlap. Calls are diverse, and include various high-pitched squeaks, squawks, and shorter, more clipped notes.

Species account: eBird.org, fetched 2025-12-26 · How these pages are made

Where it has been recorded

Recorded in 120 of the 253 countries we have eBird lists for. Each opens that country's checklist.

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