Coot Supper

Nature journal entry from February 2, 2018...

© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 66739581 - American Coot; Walton County, Georgia. February 2, 2018.

I made my morning walk around back to retention pond to count the Redhead Ducks. On the first pass I only saw eight. But on my way back there were 16. Half we’re underwater on my first walk-by!

At the northern point of the main pond, I saw a fast walking “duck” mixed in with the resident Mallards. Something different here… an American Coot! I spent 15 minutes shooting from my truck and filling an SD card. (Filling an SD card is so much better than the high cost days of shooting off several rolls of film!)

© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 66739581 - American Coot; Walton County, Georgia. February 2, 2018.

Going back out at 10:30 AM, the Coot was right outside the shelter back door tearing up a dead bream fish. This bird must have come from an area where it was accustomed to seeing people. It allowed me to approach so closely; I scooted forward on my butt until I was only 25 - 30 feet away. I fired off another several hundred photos and scored some great shots of the dead fish in its mouth.

Walton County, Georgia

• Mostly sunny, high 49°
• Sunrise 7:29 AM, sunset 6:05 PM
• Day length: 10 hours, 35 minutes
• Moon: waning gibbous, 95% illumination

Posted on February 2, 2022 09:21 PM by williamwisephoto