Perching Ducks

"Perching Ducks" have long claws on their toes to enable them to "perch" and nest in trees. They are usually found along wooded waterways such as inland lakes, rivers, streams, and swamps. The only native "Perching Duck" found North America is the Wood Duck. Some Mandarin and Muscovy Ducks that have been brought to North America (from Asia) as pets or for zoos "escaped" and have established themselves in some city parks. Because their numbers are so small they often interbreed creating a wide variety of plumages and sizes with little resemblance to the native species. The adult male Wood Duck has distinctive multicolored iridescent plumage and red eyes. The female, less colorful, has a white eye-ring and a whitish throat. Both adults have crested heads. When swimming, Wood Ducks bob their head back and forth in a jerking motion (like a coot) which makes them easy to spot. These birds feed by dabbling or walking on land. They mainly eat berries and seeds, but also insects, making them omnivores. They are also unique in that they are the only duck in North America to produce two broods per year.

Wood Duck

photo taken on the Olympic Peninsula in Western Washington

Wood Ducks - Perching on tree branches

photo taken at McNary Wildlife Nature Area, Oregon

McNary is a series of small ponds near McNary Dam on the Columbia River

Wood Duck

photo take at Mahleur National Wildlife Refuge, Central Oregon

Diving Ducks

Ducks are sometimes challenging to photograph. First, is finding the intended species.  Most ducks migrate so time of year is often important. Your choice of lakes is also important since some lakes draw a wider variety of waterfowl than others. Usually you don't know exactly what you will find. You may have a good idea that Mallards or Northern Shovelers will be around. But, even if you find them, getting close is somewhat problematic since they are in water and you are on land. If you are in a public park then it is a little easier because the ducks may be more accustomed to people and may in fact come closer to the water's edge. But in the more remote areas there are other problems. Ducks don't always sit calmly for a good profile photo. You want them to be close and in the right direction -- as opposed to swimming away from you and just showing you their "rear-end." Lighting, is a whole other issue itself, unless you just want silhouettes. With Dabbling Ducks you often just see the tail because the head is underwater. With Diving Ducks you might take a photo only to realize once you get home that all that's in your photo is a splash of water where the duck was. 

Diving ducks are different from dabbling ducks in that they -- you guessed it -- dive for their food. Diving ducks swim underwater to feed on aquatic vegetation, insects, and occasionally small fish. They can dive deeply and are strong swimmers so they dive for protection from predators as well as for food. Unlike dabbling ducks, they are very awkward on land. Diving ducks are found most often on large bodies of water such as lakes, bays, and estuaries. All of my Diving Ducks can be found throughout the United States at various times of the year. Here are my photos of Diving Ducks:

Barrow's Goldeneye

photo taken at Lake Chopaka, Northcentral Washington

Common Goldeneye

photo taken too long ago to remember exactly -- somewhere in British Columbia

Bufflehead

photo taken at Davis Lake, Oregon

Canvasback

photo taken at Potholes, Central Washington

Lesser Scaup

photo taken at Agua Caliente, Arizona

Redhead Duck

photo taken at Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge, California

Ring Necked Duck

photo taken at Agua Caliente, Arizona

Ruddy Duck

photo taken at Sweetwater Wetlands, Arizona

Dabbling Ducks

A "Dabbling Duck" is a shallow water duck that feeds primarily along the surface of the water or by tipping headfirst into the water to graze on aquatic plants and vegetation. These ducks are infrequent divers and are usually found in small ponds, rivers and other shallow waterways. Dabbling ducks also forage on land for seeds and insects. Physically, they have flat, broad bills and float high on the water while swimming and they tend to be very vocal birds. Some of these Dabbling Ducks seem to "dabble" more often than not. The Northern Shoveler for example is usually got his head under water so you only see his tail. In terms of distribution, the Fulvous Whistling Duck is only found in the southernmost parts of Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, and Florida. The Mexican Mallard is only found in Southern Arizona, New Mexico, and Mexico. The Eurasion Wigeon is only found in the northern Pacific. The Cinnamon Teal is only found in the Western United States. All others (Mallard, Gadwall, Northern Pintail, American Wigeon, Northern Shoveler, Blue Winged Teal, and Green Winged Teal are found throughout North America.

American Wigeon

photo taken at Harriett Lake, Oregon

Eurasion Wigeon

photo taken at Union Bay, Washington

Blue Winged Teal

photo taken at Mercer Slough

Cinnamon Teal

photo taken at Sweetwater Wetlands, Arizona

Green Winged Teal

photo taken at Padilla Bay, Washington

Mallard Duck

photo taken at Mercer Slough, Washington

Mexican Mallard

photo taken at San Pedro River, Arizona

Fulvous Whistling Duck

photo taken at San Pedro River, Arizona

Gadwall

photo taken at Union Bay, Washington

Northern Pintail

photo taken at Davis Lake, Oregon

Northern Shoveler

photo taken at Sweetwater Wetlands, Arizona

Sandhill Crane

The Sandhill Crane is a large crane though not as large as the much rarer Whooping Crane. It winters in much of the Western United States and summers in most of Canada. This crane frequently gives a loud trumpeting call that can be heard from a long distance. The Sandhill Crane's wingspan is 77 inches making it easy to soar (like eagles). It utilizes thermals to obtain lift and can stay aloft for many hours, requiring only an occasional flapping of their wings. Large wintering populations can be found in many parts of the Western US. I have seen 10,000 or more near Othello Washington; 10,000 or more at Bosque del Apache, New Mexico, and 25,000 at Whitewater Draw in Arizona. Many of the towns "hosting" these large quantities of cranes have festivals celebrating their presence each year.

Sandhill Crane

photo taken near Othello, Central Washington

Sandhill Crane

photo taken at Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Sandhill Crane

photo taken at Bosque del Apache, New Mexico

Sandhill Crane

photo taken at Whitewater Draw, Arizona

Swans

The Trumpeter Swan, is the largest waterfowl in the world with a length of 64 inches and weight of 26 pounds.  They have white plumage with a long neck, a black bill subtly marked with salmon-pink along the mouthline, and usually has short usually dark legs. Natural populations of Trumpeter Swans are migratory spending their summers in Alaska, and wintering in small pockets of Washington, Montana, and the southernmost parts of Eastern British Columbia and Western Alberta.They feed while swimming, sometimes up-ending or dabbling to reach submerged food. The diet is almost entirely aquatic plants.

Trumpeter Swan

photo taken at Frenchman's Hill, Central Washington

Trumpeter Swan

photo taken on Fir Island, Washington

Tundra Swan (also called the Whistling Swan) weighs about 15 pounds, with a body length of 52 inches and wingspan of 66 inches, making it smaller than the Trumpeter Swan.  They are particularly vocal when foraging in flocks on their wintering grounds (similar to the Sandhill Cranes). As their common name implies, the Tundra Swan breeds in the Arctic and Subarctic Tundra. Like the Trumpeter Swan it too is migratory wintering on grassland/marshland. But unlike the rarer Trumpeter Swan, it winters throughout much of the Northern US and Canada. When migrating they fly in the typical "V" formation at altitudes of 27,000 feet.

Tundra Swan

photo taken at Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge, Oregon

Tundra Swan

photo taken at Portage Creek Wildlife Preserve, Washington

White Pelican

Growing up on the East Coast, I thought Pelicans were Sea Birds found in Florida. When we moved to Seattle back in 1984 I had no reason to doubt that until I was in the desert of Central Washington and found a dozen or so on a small pond in "The Potholes." Now, of course I realize that they are migratory birds, and can be found in much of the interior Central and Western US during the summer months. They move to the Southern Coasts of the US and Mexico in the winter. The White Pelican is a very large and plump bird; its overall length is about 62 inches with a wingspan of 108 inches. It's weight is 16 1/2 pounds so it is a fairly good size bird. It's plumage is almost entirely bright white, except for black on the underside of its' wings. The black is only visible in flight or when the wings are extended. The White Pelican's bill is long and flat, with a large throat sac.  Unlike the Brown Pelican, it does not dive for food. Instead it catches its prey while swimming. Each bird eats more than 4 pounds of food a day (mostly fish). The only limerick I can remember is this one:

A wonderful bird in the Pelican

His break can hold more than his belican

He can take in his beak

Enough food for a week

And I'm dammed if I know how the helican

White Pelican with Double Crested Cormorant

photo taken at Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

White Pelican

photo taken in Central Washington

White Pelican

photo taken in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

White Pelican

photo taken at Fig Lagoon, California

White Pelican, American Avocet, Black Necked Stilt

photo taken at Cochise Lake, Arizona

Geese

On to Geese. I was going to start with the Brant Goose found along the Pacific Coast. I had many nice photos taken in the Puget Sound in Washington. They were some of my first photos when I was using a Minolta APS cartridge system. I must not have scanned them into iPhoto and don't have them anymore. Oh well. So, first up the most common of all geese, the Canada Goose abundantly found throughout North America (except Southern Arizona and Southern Florida. Then Ross's Goose, Snow Goose, and White Fronted Goose all of which migrate from the Atlantic, Pacific, and Gulf coasts to the Arctic in the summer. Geese are herbivores although they sometimes eat small insects and fish. 

Canada Goose

photo taken at Campbell Lake, British Columbia

Ross Goose

photo taken at Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge, Oregon

Snow Goose (both light and dark forms)

photo taken at Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge, Washington

Snow Goose

photo taken on Fir Island, Washington

Snow and White Fronted Goose

photo taken at Tule Lake, California