Duck-like body, but note lobed toes and stubby white bill. Adults are black overall, juveniles dull grayish. In flight, white tips on secondaries are sometimes visible.

Common on ponds and in marshes. Walks onto lawns and golf courses to graze on grass.

Widely distributed in North America, found year-round for most of its range. Northern populations are migratory with the largest breeding areas in the Prairie-Pothole Region of Canada and north-central United States.