"Teenage" coot, Temescal Regional Park,

This young one is wandering from the nest, foraging for itself for the first time. I suspect that the parents are watching from the reeds. You've probably seen the adults; they are black with white beaks. They are often mistaken for ducks but are actually members of the rail family (related to clapper rails, Virginia rails, etc.) They dive to the bottom of the lake or pond and grab aquatic
plants to eat. If there are bugs on the plants, they'll eat those too. They build floating nests from light water plants.
If you want to check out my western fence lizard, see 5/22/10.