I Have Cooties!

Yup...two of them in fact.  I am obsessed with two American Coots at the harbour in Cobourg.  My experience with Coots to date has been to barely catch a glimpse.  I've found them to be elusive and they don't tend to hang around people. 

But this pair in Cobourg live with the gulls, mallards and geese right next to the parking lot on the beach and they fit right in.  They are oblivious to people which is why I was laying on a dock in the f-f-f-reezing cold today trying to get a few shots. 

They are tricky to photography because they are so dark and the sun was brilliant today.  As you can see, their eyes are red so the sun has to reflect just so or you end up throwing tons of photos away.  I got lucky a couple of times and it was fun to spend time with them.

It is hard to tell in these photos but they have GIANT feet in proportion to the rest of their body.

Here are a few Coot facts that I didn't know:
* They are in the Rail family.
* Also called Marsh or Mud Hen.
* The females often lay eggs in the nests of others (even if they have a nest of their own)
* A group of Coots is called a "Cover" or "Raft"

In this article it says that Coots can become tame if they hang around other birds that are fed (I'm guessing feeding takes place in Cobourg as it does in most harbours).
http://birding.about.com/od/birdprofiles/p/American-Coot.htm

All in all, a great experience with two really neat birds!