Hawaiian Coot - Taxonomy

Taxonomy

The first reference to a coot in the Hawaiian Islands was by Andrew Bloxam, who saw it, although he did not collect a specimen, while in the islands in 1825 as the naturalist on board HMS Blonde. He mistook it for the Eurasian Coot, Fulica atra. It is now considered either to be a separate species, Fulica alai, or a subspecies of the American Coot, Fulica americana alai.