Spring chick update

I had some time yesterday to visit the local lake again to see how the Australian Coot family was doing. We had a taste of summer yesterday with a warm, steady breeze blowing and lots of sunshine.

The Coot chicks have definitely grown and they were out on the more open side of the bull rushes with their ever attentive parents. Despite the choppy water the chicks swim very strongly and are beginning to look a little more like their parents.
The parent birds were keen to keep their young near the protection of the rushes so photographs were a bit trickier but I think you will see the growth that has occurred in 5 days.

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Back at the Lake

I paid a quick visit to the local lake again yesterday to see how much the Australian Coot chicks had grown.

I only spotted one being fed attentively by a parent bird.

Australian Coot with chick, Whitby, Porirua

This chick looked sturdier and was very hungry but still light enough to be supported by a fallen reed.

How cute is a Coot?

The day was clear and sunny and I wandered down to the local man-made lake. I had hoped for some ducklings or cygnets and none were in evidence. However tucked in to the edge of the bullrushes were these fluffy scraps with yellow spikey scarves, red coloured heads and beaks.

Initially I thought they must be Pukeko chicks but the Pukeko’s usually live and nest in a more remote spot of the lake where the rushes are much thicker and matted.

When an adult Australian Coot appeared from the rushes it was very obvious that these chicks belonged to her, or him. A second adult appeared and with it another baby.

The parents busily fed the chicks and chased away any other duck that came too close to their young.

It is remarkable to see chicks with such different colourings to their parents when they are so young. A closer look at the babies’ beaks shows the tip to be white just like their parents.