524 Lake Maxinkuckee, Physical and Biological Survey 



seen ; loth, a larg^e flock seen ; 16th to 26th, common, and some 

 hunting ; 27th, abundant ; 28th, many ; 29th, plentiful ; 30th, abund- 

 ant and a good deal of shooting. November 1, common. 



An examination of the above detailed data shows that the coots 

 appear in the spring very soon after the ice goes off and that they 

 remain until about the last of April when they leave for further 

 north. They usually appear about the last days of April and re- 

 main approximately one month. In the fall they make their ap- 

 pearance usually in the first days of September. Occasionally a 

 few may be seen in August, but they generally appear between the 

 6th and 15th of September. By the last of September they are 

 present in large numbers and remain so until the lake freezes over 

 or until persecution by the gunners drives them away. 



On October 25, 1904, the total number on the lake was esti- 

 mated at 10,000. In the winter of 1900-1901, several remained 

 until only one small pool was left open. The last was seen Janu- 

 ary 10. 



The coots always migrate at night ; one never sees flocks either 

 arriving or departing, or rarely sees them flying except when they 

 have been scared up. When flying they do not rise directly from 

 the water like a duck but at a low angle or incline, their feet work- 

 ing frantically, as do their wings, as they rise out of the water, 

 striking and kicking the water for some distance until they have 

 got too high to touch it. 



They frequently have the curious and foolish habit of rising out 

 of the water and flying close by the boat which has disturbed them. 



They are, at Maxinkuckee, as thoroughly a water bird as any 

 species of duck with the one exception already mentioned. We 

 never saw them walking on the shore as mentioned by Cooper, but 

 observed that they might be found in any and all parts of the lake, 

 though they were most apt to occur in large numbers nearer shore 

 than most other water birds. The helldiver and grebes, as a rule, 

 came somewhat nearer shore than the coots; and small flocks of 

 butterballs and whistlers and solitary ruddy ducks were disposed 

 to stay near shore. Bluebills would usually be a little farther from 

 the shore than the coots, while the redheads, mallards, and canvas- 

 backs would be still farther out. However, it often happened that 

 nearly all, or quite all, of these species would be mixed together 

 in a single flock, the coots and bluebills constituting the shore side 

 of the miscellaneous group. 



When the coots first arrive in numbers in the fall they are not 

 wild, but quite tame and unsuspicious, frequently coming near the 



