(C) Daily Kos
This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered.
 . . . . . . . . . .



The Daily Bucket - Merganser mistake (by me) and Open Thread. [1]

['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags']

Date: 2023-02-28  

Red-breasted Merganser pair

I saw a small floating raft of birds in the early morning haze. I knew all the surrounding birds by size and color (Pelicans, Gulls and Cormorants) and these were not those. The video below is the first indication of the species as they neared.

The Daily Bucket is a nature refuge. We amicably discuss animals, weather, climate, soil, plants, waters and note life’s patterns. We invite you to note what you are seeing around you in your own part of the world, and to share your observations in the comments below. Each note is a record that we can refer to in the future as we try to understand the phenological patterns that are quietly unwinding around us. To have the Daily Bucket in your Activity Stream, visit Backyard Science’s profile page and click on Follow.

I kept filming thinking I was recording a flock of Common Mergansers. I had seen those a few years before and knew they migrated through. I was surprised when I got home and found that I had recorded Red-breasted Mergansers instead.

I had also filmed Hooded Mergansers and thought I might have these on film. Here are a few stills of those encounters.

Hooded Merganser male in breeding plumage

Seemed close to shape and color (except for all those little differences that are not obvious to me).

Hooded Merganser pair

Especially the female in this photo with her chicks. But, Red-breasted don’t breed here (as I discovered in the Cornell and Audubon sites).

Hooded Merganser with chicks

I could not find my photo of a Common Merganser. So I borrowed a photo from Audubon’s archives.

Common Merganser pair — photo by Tim Lenz, 2016 Tomphin, NY

Now that I know the difference, I am glad I looked harder and didn’t assume I knew that I was seeing a familiar bird. I’ll let the still photo and final video finish this article.

.

All of you familiar with Mergansers may find this a simple diary of identification. For me it is another reason to observe closer those things that may seem mundane or regular. I appreciated the surprise.

It is a work day for me so I won’t be available until the afternoon. Please feel free to consider this an open thread and proceed fully.

[END]
---
[1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/2/28/2155120/-The-Daily-Bucket-Merganser-mistake-by-me-and-Open-Thread

Published and (C) by Daily Kos
Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified.

via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/