Ugly-cute, or Cute-ugly? Another Kind of Spring Arrival at CSU Stanislaus

I can't decide if they are cute-ugly, or ugly-cute. In any case, these little technicolor chicks were hanging around Warrior Lake at the campus of CSU Stanislaus. They are among the other "spring arrivals" that I've been blogging about for several weeks now. Only they aren't tropical migrants, they are simply newborn chicks of some of the resident species.

I admit that if Mama hadn't been hanging out nearby, I never would have guessed the species of these little ones. The colors certainly give no hint, but their gangly legs sort of do. Do know their identity?

Ah, there's Ma. They're American Coots (Fulica Americana). Who knew they could be so colorful?

Some More Spring Arrivals, But These Aren't Migrants: The Babies of CSU Stanislaus

The babies are everywhere! I took the occasion to wander the campus of CSU Stanislaus in Turlock this afternoon. The landscape includes some rather large ponds, and an artificial stream that is meant to reflect the vegetation from the Sierra Nevada to the floor of the Great Valley. Reeds have become established in some of the ponds, and as such, the campus has recreated some of the wetland environments that used to exist in valley. The birds have responded, and a number of species are reproducing and raising their young on the campus. And that means for a few weeks of the year, there are adorable young chicks running around everywhere.

First we have the Mallard babies (Anas platyrhynchos). Five of them were huddled just a few inches from the pathway along the artificial stream. Apparently the humans here treat them well because Momma Mallard let me carefully step by without scattering as long as I had my back to them and pretended to be looking at something else.

Then there were the Canada Geese babies (Branta candensis). There are a lot of geese on the campus, and at times they have become a bit of a nuisance. They sometimes get chased off by specially trained dogs, but there were around thirty of them scattered across the campus today. There were two broods of goslings that I ran across, and the parents were on the verge of being aggressive when I walked by, but they kept their distance. The babies of course were cute.

The biggest surprise was one that I didn't recognize right away because it seemed like there were no parents around. I got two clues a short time later, as an American Coot (Fulica Americana) was nearby chasing off some Mallards from the baby. And then there were the feet, visible when it climbed out of the water for a moment. Those giant odd-shaped feet are unmistakeably coot-like.

A Bird That Doesn't Get Much Respect: The American Coot

Here's a bird that doesn't get very much respect: the American Coot (Fulica Americana). After all, what is that we call an eccentric or crotchety person, especially an old man? I was mildly shocked to go down my list of blog posts to find that I've never done one about the coots. Still, they are versatile birds that do very well in aquatic environments. I see them often when we tour our local refuges, but maybe because they are common, I find I've taken few pictures of them. I did take a few, though, when we stopped in at the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge during our holiday travels. They have very interesting red eyes.

The coots are not ducks, but are instead more closely related to Sandhill Cranes and rails. They don't have webbed feet, for one thing, and aren't the most graceful of flyers. They consume vast amounts of vegetation, but are also opportunists who will eat bugs and crustaceans at times. They are common in any bodies of water from Central America all the way to Canada.