# Are There Any Non Web Footed Swimming Birds **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 28, 2011, 9:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-web-footed-swimming-birds/604326 "2011-11-28T09:03:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BeaMyra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/2bfe46/32.png) [@BeaMyra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeaMyra)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2011, 9:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-web-footed-swimming-birds/604326/1 "2011-11-28T09:03:23Z")
I look at ducks, gulls, and so forth and the birds have webbed feet. I am assuming webbed feet help for swimming. Are there any birds that regularly swim and do not have webbed feet. I don’t mean like my uncle who had a chicken that for some odd reason would go in the lake and swim. Actually it was a rooster, who knew they could swim? I mean a bird that spends time around water ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2011, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-web-footed-swimming-birds/604326/2 "2011-11-28T09:24:23Z")
storm petrels And frigate birds have slight vestigial webbing. ---
**Author:** ![mac\_bolan00](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b3f665/32.png) [@mac\_bolan00](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mac_bolan00)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2011, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-web-footed-swimming-birds/604326/3 "2011-11-28T09:28:56Z")
not an answer but penguins are only semi-web footed. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2011, 9:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-web-footed-swimming-birds/604326/4 "2011-11-28T09:35:54Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > storm petrels > > And frigate birds have slight vestigial webbing. Oops. Frigate birds can’t swim. I swear to god, I thought frigate birds could swim. ---
**Author:** ![BeaMyra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/2bfe46/32.png) [@BeaMyra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeaMyra)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2011, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-web-footed-swimming-birds/604326/5 "2011-11-28T09:50:29Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > Oops. Frigate birds can’t swim. > > I swear to god, I thought frigate birds could swim. Wikipedia says they don’t swim, not that they can’t. I wonder if they can swim a little? Or enough to keep from drowning? Hmmm ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2011, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-web-footed-swimming-birds/604326/6 "2011-11-28T09:54:10Z")
Grebes don’t have webbed feet, and they are excellent swimmers. However that’s a bit of a cheat since the individual toes are flattened. Still there is a total absence of webbing. If you are looking for swimming birds without any modifications to the feet, the dippers are the obvious answer. Fantastic swimmers, with perfectly normal birdy feet. ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2011, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-web-footed-swimming-birds/604326/7 "2011-11-28T10:01:42Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > storm petrels. Cite! Because [their feet look pretty darned webbed](http://seanetters.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/wilsons_petrel.jpg) to me. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2011, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-web-footed-swimming-birds/604326/8 "2011-11-28T10:05:25Z")
> [@Blake](#): > > Cite! > > Because [their feet look pretty darned webbed](http://seanetters.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/wilsons_petrel.jpg) to me. Yep. I was wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2011, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-web-footed-swimming-birds/604326/9 "2011-11-28T10:27:55Z")
Moorhens have fairly ordinary-looking (if somewhat oversized) bird feet - and they do swim, although they spend much of their time walking on floating weed mats and marsh. Coots swim a lot, and don’t have webbed feet (although they have flattened flanges on each individual toe/joint). ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2011, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-non-web-footed-swimming-birds/604326/10 "2011-11-28T13:16:46Z")
> [@mac\_bolan00](#): > > not an answer but penguins are only semi-web footed. And they don’t use their feet, but their wings, to propel themselves in the water.