The highlight of a visit to Decoy Country Park this morning was a partial eclipse male
Scaup, presumably the same bird that is now back for at least its third winter on the lake. Saying that, I'm fairly certain it was a Scaup and didn't have any hybrid elements. My area of doubt relates to the colour of the head - a rich brown, almost chestnut in bright sunlight - and the area of black on the bill tip, which appeared quite large (though not as large as Tufted Duck). Everything else seemed fine for (Greater) Scaup. I'm relatively unfamiliar with this plumage and there seem to be rather few photos online to compare, so I'd appreciate any feedback. Apologies for the quality of the photos.
Comparison with male Tufted Duck - note smaller black 'nail' on bill...
...though is it too large?
Rich brown head in bright sunlight, with hint of green in front of eye
Whilst I was grilling the ducks there was a small overhead passage of 4
Skylarks, 9
Meadow Pipits and a
Siskin, with two
Grey Wagtails and a
Swallow briefly circling the lake and a
Marsh Tit calling from adjacent woodland. At Newton Abbot Racecourse late morning were two
Wheatears and a
Stonechat, with 12 more
Skylarks on the move.
No comments:
Post a Comment