Complex life of marsh birds: Coots foil nest invaders, reject impostors
Wednesday, December 16, 2009 - 22:14
in Paleontology & Archaeology
The American coot is a drab, seemingly unremarkable marsh bird common throughout North America. But its reproductive life is full of deception and violence. According to biologists, coots have evolved a remarkable set of cognitive abilities to thwart other coots that lay eggs in their neighbors' nests.