Springtime on the New River

The coots are busy building nests out of grass, twigs and other debris on the calm waters of the New River.

Mr Coot brings back some nesting material:


and passes it to Mrs Coot:


Mrs Coot moves her eggs around a little:


and settles down for a spot of incubation:


so that's what discarded supermarket trolleys are for! (click on photos to enlarge)

Coot: Fulica atra. AKA: Common coot, which is all-black and larger than its cousin, the moorhen, it has a distinctive white beak and 'shield' above the beak which earns it the title 'bald'. Coots prefer to live on areas of fairly shallow standing freshwater with a muddy bottom and plenty of vegetation at the sides. Found mainly in lowland areas they eat vegetation, snails and insect larvae.