A cooperative Coot

Usually, these Coots just keep swimming, but this one paused just long enough for me to get a reasonably sharp shot. Taken in SW Calgary on 1 May 2014.

"Though commonly mistaken to be ducks, American Coots belong to a distinct order. Unlike the webbed feet of ducks, coots have broad, lobed scales on their lower legs and toes that fold back with each step in order to facilitate walking on dry land. Coots live near water, typically inhabiting wetlands and open water bodies in North America. Groups of coots are called covers or rafts. The oldest known coot lived to be 22 years old." From Wikipedia.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Coot

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/american_coot/id