Adult: Gray-black head and neck. Body somewhat lighter. White feathers along flank. Bill brown with yellowy tip. Frontal shield brownish.

Breeding adult: Black head. Frontal shield brilliant red. Bill red with yellow tip. 

Immature: Browny-gray. Dark bill. Pale throat, buffy face. Chick is downy, black and precocial.  

Habitat: Freshwater marshes, lakes, ponds, river edges and mud flats. 

A Florida resident. 

Text by Mary Jean Rogers, West Volusia Audubon.