Colorado Duck ID: Female Goldeneye

Richard, one of my readers located in Colorado, shared this picture of a duck he's trying to identify. I made a very feeble attempt to ID it just using online resources (All About Birds, Ducks Unlimited, etc.) but ran out of time on my lunch break. I forgot to check my guide books at home last night, and thought I'd open it up to the rest of my readers to get him an answer sooner than later.

First of all, it's a great picture. I find capturing ducks on water can be extremely difficult, so Richard already has that in his favor.

Any thoughts?
----------------------------
UPDATE: 2/19/09 11:30am
Thanks to Jeff and Gabrielle for solving this mystery ID in record time!
I should really study up on my waterfowl...

Comments

Anonymous said…

It's a female Goldeneye. Common, I think based on the shape of the head and location in CO. Aside from the yellow eye, it's the rusty brown head, grey body with white patch on the wing and the white band around the neck that all indicate Goldeneye. I agree it's a good shot. I can never get good pics of ducks on the water :(

February 19, 2009 at 8:28:00 AM PST

Jeff said…

That looks like a female Common Goldeneye. (pic)

Apart from the eye itself you could observe the neck ring, the brown head, and the yellow bill tip. The rest of the bill is too dark and the head too slender for this to be a Barrow's.

February 19, 2009 at 8:29:00 AM PST

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 ...

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.

BirdingGirl

Search This Blog