THE COOT. 645 



Coot is black, it is a pretty bird when in the water, and if the day- 

 be calm, the reflection on the surface has a very curious effect, 

 the white patch appearing as if it rose to the surface of the water 

 every time that the bird nods its head in the act of swimming. 



The favorite nesting -places of the Coot are little islands on 

 which the grass grows rankly. Failing them, it will make its nest 

 among reeds and rushes, binding and twisting them together until 

 they are firm enough to support the weight of the nest, the bird, 

 and the many eggs. Should it not find either of these localities, 

 it will build on the edge of the water, and almost invariably con- 

 trives to make its nest in such a manner that it can not be reached 

 from the land. The quantity of reeds, bulrushes, sedgeSj grass, 

 and other materials used in the nest is very surprising ; and yet, 

 in spite of its large dimensions, it is not a conspicuous object. 

 The nest contains a great number of eggs, seldom less than seven, 

 and sometimes twelve or fourteen. They are whitish, and pro- 

 fusely spotted with irregular brown marks. 



In the illustration the haunts of the Coot are well represented. 

 In the foreground is seen one of the grass tussocks, of which a 

 pair of Coots have taken possession, and in which the young are 

 seen under the protection of their parents. Similar tussocks pro- 

 trude from the shallow water, and from one of them the mother 

 Coot is issuing, followed by her young brood. In the background 

 are seen a pair of swans, one of which is bearing her young on her 

 back, according to the custom of her kind. 



As is the case with many of the "illustrations to this work, the 

 sketch was taken from nature. 



