Female Ring-necked Duck—Mystery Solved!

Ding Ding Ding- We have a winner! I am confident to say this mystery duck that I saw at Four Ponds Conservation Area in Pocasset, MA is a female ring-necked duck.

Source: Lloyd Spitalnik's Wildlife Galleries

http://www.lloydspitalnikphotos.com/

Leah at BlueBirdFriendliness gave me a good tip about Scoters and Eiders, and I was fairly confident that it was a Female Common Scoter in 2nd year breeding plumage, but the ring on the bill was lacking in the pictures I found.

As my friend Dave always tells me, if there is a key characteristic missing then it probably isn't a match and keep looking. I should have known better but didn't think I could get any closer.

Thanks to Andy at Andyslens.com for helping me solve this mystery! I better study up and spend more time outdoors so I can get a little sharper.

Comments

Anonymous said…

I just had a mis-ID with a Ring-necked Duck as well. I posted a picture calling it a Lesser Scaup. A reader corrected me and when I compared it to an old picture of a scaup, I realized I had been sloppy in my ID. I'm also learning that ducks are tricky.

December 15, 2008 at 10:10:00 AM PST

Larry said…

I've been birding for a while now and still ask for help when I'm not sure.-You're seeing some nice birdss either way-and Happy New Year!!

January 1, 2009 at 4:03:00 PM PST

Anonymous said…

I miss your posts...I am a super novice at so appreciate your efforts!

January 18, 2009 at 6:10:00 AM PST

Difference Between Grackles and Starlings

I saw a sad sight today during my lunchtime jog—a dead grackle. Or was it a starling? I'll get to that in a minute. I was making my way down to the trail along the Charles River when I saw what I thought was an injured bird in the middle of the road. It was just sitting there and I figured it was just stunned or maybe had an injured wing. The bird probably didn't have much of a chance, but the least I could move it out of the road. As I got closer to the bird I saw it had its mouth open and then I realized the gruesome truth—it was dead and was frozen in that position. I just got shivers thinking about it. The poor thing. Anyway, so it got me to thinking 'What is the difference between grackles and starlings?' I use the two interchangeably and haven't really made an effort to sort it out. Until now. I like to use All About Birds from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as an online resource. The site is comprehensive and easy to use. (I also really like the 'Cool ...

Killdeer Chick in Yellowstone National Park

These were taken at West Thumb Geyser Basis, along the beach. It was really cool to get to watch these little chicks up close and personal. I had never seen Killdeer chicks before- only adults. These pictures are from our trip to Montana/Wyoming in July 2012.

Well, Here We Are — Back to Birding Girl After 11 Years

Well, here we are—after an epic 11-year hiatus, I’m sitting back at my Adirondack chair, overlooking the picturesque cranberry bogs we live on now. I've swapped my super strong coffee for a hoppy, locally-brewed IPA to celebrate the end of the work day, and starting work again on my personal project- BirdingGirl. Honestly, it feels a little surreal. If you’re popping in and thinking, “Wait, she’s posting again?”—yep, it’s me! The binoculars are still close by, the dog is snoozing nearby, and yes, the birds have kept me company all along. Life Lately: Birding (Mostly) at Home Let’s get this out of the way—I never stopped birding. Not for a minute! Sure, life looks a bit different now. Marriage and kids will do that to you, right? These days, “getting out in the field” means looking up at the trees lining the trails leading to the cranberry bogs I walk my dog on, listening for great-horned owls and wood thrushes, or watching a flash of yellow as the warblers return each spring. I ...

BirdingGirl

Search This Blog