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There is a family of birds called phalaropes in which the male does exactly as you describe. Phalaropes are shorebirds, like sandpipers, and there are three species within the group: Red-necked Phalarope, Wilson's Phalarope and Red Phalarope. The three species share certain characteristics, both in feeding and breeding strategies.

In all phalaropes, the female is larger and more brightly colored than the male and almost their entire breeding behavior is reversed from most other species. On the breeding grounds, the male establishes a territory, builds a nest and courts the female. The highly promiscuous females will mate, deposit the fertilized eggs in the nest and then leave the male to incubate, hatch and feed the young until they fledge. The female takes no part in the raising of the young and will continue to mate with other males during the breeding season.

In winter, both sexes lose their breeding plumage and essentially turn varying shades of gray and white. Red and Red-necked Phalaropes winter at sea, while Wilson's Phalaropes spend their non-breeding season in salty lakes in highlands of South America.

Phalaropes have also evolved a very interesting feeding behavior. Most of the time, they feed in shallow water and rapidly spin in circles, stirring up the bottom and causing micro-organisms to rise to the surface. The bird then quickly picks the food out of the water with its long sharp bill. In deep water, phalaropes feed in the same fashion, but their spinning brings up similar organisms from several feet below them. They will also forage along wet shorelines in much the same manner as many other sandpipers.

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