Different breeds co-operating.

I spent a week on a houseboat on the Murray over New Year and around the
boat there were a few Coots and Dusky Moorhens.

The creek we were on the water was very clear and you could see the weed
growing up from the bottom but stopping 600 mm from the surface.

The Coots being able to dive would dive and get the weed and bring it to the
surface and feed the Moorhens who couldn’t dive but would follow them around
all day.

They usually operated in trios of one Coot to two Moorhens

If the Coot popped up and the Moorhens were some distance away they would
call them and wait till they swam to them and let them take the weed from
their beaks.

I have seen Pelicans interacting with Cormorants in deep water, following
them around waiting till they surfaced to swallow the fish they have caught
and then grabbing the

Cormorants and shaking them till they dropped the fish , but I wouldn’t call
that voluntary co-operation.

A bit like the Chinese and Japanese with their trained Cormorants with the
ring around there necks to stop them swallowing their catch.

Is this the usual practice between the Coot and the Moorhen ????

It was not a one off occurrence as they did for the week and were still
doing it when we left.

I took some photos of them doing it as they were feeding just at the back of
the houseboat.

Barney.