American coot arcing formations, and sequential take-off dynamics. The American coot can dive for food but can also forage and scavenge on land. Their principal source of food is aquatic vegetation, especially algae. Yet they are omnivorous, also eating arthropods, fish, and other aquatic animals. During breeding season, coots are more likely to eat aquatic insects and mollusks—which constitute the majority of a chick's diet. The coot mating season occurs during May and June. Coot mate pairings are monogamous throughout their life, given they have a suitable territory. A typical reproductive cycle involves multiple stages: pairing, nesting, copulation, egg deposition, incubation, and
Chatham coot two species. They have variously been considered full species, subspecies or lacking in taxonomic distinction. At one point a new genus, "Nesophalaris", was proposed for them. A review by Trevor Worthy and Richard Holdaway in 2002 recommended that the two coots be treated as separate species. Remains of the coot were first found by Forbes in dune deposits on Chatham Island in 1892, since when much further material has been recovered from dunes and from Moriori middens on the island. It was a large coot, slightly larger than the New Zealand coot, some 40 cm in length and 1.9 kg