Wyandotte Gadwall - 14 Feb 2007
1500 Hrs. Last night we got about 6-8” of fresh snowfall. Its sunny and clear right now, but its cold. About 10ºF and sub-zero windchills. Down at the foot of St. John’s there is open water to the north of the dock, but the river is still choked with ice.
I spotted a pair of Gadwall out in the river and got a few pics of them, but they were a bit too far off to call keepers. Another Gadwall drifted by a bit closer, and I was able to get some keeper images of him.
A male Canvasback drifted by and I got a couple images of him. A female Mallard was resting in the snow on the other side of the fence, and I was able to get some nice closeups of her. Very pretty against the ice and snow.
After shooting a few more images of a pair of Gadwall out in the water, I noticed an unusual duck sleeping on the ice next to the two dozen Mallard at the boat ramp. I’m not certain, but I believed it might be a male Gadwall, and possibly my first real closeup subject. I had to get out and walk out to the right side of the boat ramp, and I did so very slowly so as not to spook the ducks. Several Mallard saw me approach, and started moving out to open water, but the Gadwall stayed still. I was able to get to the end of the dock and use one of the wooden posts as a rest for the 400mm f/5.6 and 1.4TC. The Gadwall awoke, and stretched several times, giving me gorgeous looks at his feathering.
A female Canvasback was next to him, and I got some nice images of her. However, the numbers of Mallards were blocking me from getting a clean portrait shot of the male Gadwall. Finally, all of the Mallards took off, but the Gadwall continued to stretch and preen for me. I emptied the memory card, but not before it showed me its red wing patch that is usually hidden. Absolutely stunning bird!
Seaway Boat Club, Wyandotte, Wayne, Michigan, US
Feb 14, 2007 3:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Protocol: Traveling
0.1 mile(s)
Checklist Comments: 6-8" Fresh snow last nite. Sunny, clear but 10F w/ sub-zero windchill. Detroit River ice-choked
3 species
Gadwall (Mareca strepera) 6
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) 25
Canvasback (Aythya valisineria) 2
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S1
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)
I then drove down to Ecorse Park and flushed a male Common Goldeneye next to shore. I tried to get some flight shots, and did capture him splash a female Common Merganser, but still not a great shot.
Another Ruddy Duck floated by,
as did a female Redhead. As small as Common Goldeneye are, I got a pic of the Ruddy Duck next to the goldeneye, and it looked absolutely tiny next to the goldeneye! A few more pics of a pair of Gadwall were also in order.
I was then able to get a nice portrait shot of a male Mallard as he swam out from under me. As he dipped his head below water and came back up, I got a photo of him with water streaming from his eye, and if he were crying.
A Mute Swan flew past and I got a few flight shots of it close by, and I completed a great outing with a few pics of Canada Geese sleeping on the snow next to shore.
Dingell Park (formally Ecorse Park), Wayne, Michigan, US
Feb 14, 2007 3:30 PM - 3:50 PM
Protocol: Traveling
0.1 mile(s)
Checklist Comments: 6-8" Fresh snow last nite. Sunny, clear but 10F w/ sub-zero windchill. Detroit River ice-choked
7 species
Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) 6
Gadwall (Mareca strepera) 4
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) 1
Redhead (Aythya americana) 1
Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula) 1
Common Merganser (Mergus merganser) 1
Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis) 1
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S1
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)
