Red-fronted Coot

About the Red-fronted Coot

The red-fronted coot (Fulica rufifrons) is a species of bird in subfamily Rallinae of family Rallidae, the rails, gallinules, and coots. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Peru, and Uruguay. The red-fronted coot is monotypic.

The red-fronted coot is 38 to 43 cm (15 to 17 in) long. Male specimens can weigh between 685 and 735 g (24 and 26 oz) and females can weigh around 550 g (19 oz). The sexes are alike. Adults have a yellow bill, a dark chestnut-red frontal shield, and olive legs and feet. Unique among coots, their feet are not lobed. Their plumage is almost entirely dark slate gray except for white undertail coverts. Juveniles have a blackish bill, white spots on the throat, and gray-brown plumage with the same white undertail coverts as adults.

The red-fronted coot is found coastally from southern Peru to central Chile, in at least one site in Bolivia, and from southeastern Brazil south through Uruguay to east central Argentina. It has also occurred as a vagrant in Paraguay and the Falkland Islands, though the last sighting at the latter location was in 1924. Clements extends its range... Wikipedia →