Although they often "appear" dumb, I have found coots to be really quick learners. Back when I was much younger, I hunted them some. They were, generally, difficult to get to flush. They would hold in cattails and sedge as tightly as a rooster pheasant

Hal Michael
Board of Directors, Ecologists Without Borders http://ecowb.org/
Olympia WA
360-459-4005
360-791-7702 (C)
ucd880 at comcast.net




> On 12/23/2024 4:13 PM PST Dennis Paulson via Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu> wrote:

>

>

> Alan, I'm glad to hear that coots actually have a brain in those little heads! I once saw an eagle fly over a big (>100) spread-out flock of coots on Lake Washington and had them all amazingly rapidly assemble into a single long line. Not sure what the strategy was there, but it was obvious and interesting.

>

> Dennis

>

>

> > On Dec 23, 2024, at 1:28 PM, pan via Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu mailto:tweeters at u.washington.edu> wrote:

> > Tweets,

> >

> > I, too, have seen eagles hunting coots and other diving birds on Lake Washington. A few times, though, I've seen the prey outfox the eagles at Magnuson Park. When an eagle was working a coot flock, the coots would move under the swim/dive dock on short supports off shore, and mill in the middle until the eagle gave up and danger passed.

> >

> > Alan Grenon

> > Seattle

> >

> > panmail AT mailfence period com

> >

> >

> >

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