Wildewood Wonders: Ring-necked Duck

White Pelicans, January 28,2023

This week I revisited Jon Young's, What the Robin Knows, a book that deepens the kinship between humans and species. In it, he offers a simple suggestion to foster that kinship: go outside for twenty minutes to see what you can see.

I did that. Here's what I saw after immediately stepping outside. A Yellow-rumped Warbler and then a Blue Jay.

Then I headed to the big pond. Ringed-necked Ducks, male and female

This photo of the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher shows the color of its name. Contrast this photo with this one taken at sunset. This photo deceives - this bird is super tiny.

Red-winged Blackbird

A Common Snapping Turtle crossing Oak Drive. There are two types of snapping turtles in Florida. The Alligator Snapping Turtle has more ridges on its shell.

Two Northern Mockingbirds doing a spring dance - either territorial or mating.

And here's what neighbors saw recently.

Vicki from Palm Village saw an Opossum. I've written in the past about our good neighbor, the opossums.

Kat tends a butterfly garden behind her unit, one with many Monarch caterpillars. She noticed a Monarch Butterfly just before it emerged.

Betsy saw a Monarch butterfly on the Mexican Marigold bloom in the butterfly garden.

Marc Holtsberg came upon a thriving hive of European Honey Bees. Beekeepers tell us this is a sign of a healthy ecosystem.

Maybe those bees were the ones who found nectar from the Dombeya in front of our place.

Marc also took this beautiful photo of a juvenile Bald Eagle (at Robinson Preserve).

He also was delighted by the Great Horned Owl fledgling. Its nest is adjacent to the entrance to the north entry of Robinson Preserve.

Nadia noticed the sunset. Look at that color.

Female Northern Shoveler Duck snuggled into a ball shape, and male Shoveler.

About 8:30 this morning (2/4/22) I noticed a lot of ducks meeting in the middle of the pond - mallards, ring-necks, scaups, shovelers, widgeons, and mixed breeds.

Before I arrived at the pond's edge, I noticed a commotion of small birds in the Southern Oak trees. I heard then saw Grey Gnat Catchers. I got a photograph of one.

Polioptilids (a Gnatcatcher's formal name) glean small insects and other arthropods from leaves and branches, often flicking their tails actively as they forage. Despite their name, they very rarely take flying gnats on the wing.

A Tufted Titmouse singing like it was the best day ever. I agreed.

A female Downy Woodpecker. The tapping sounded like drumming. Both sexes drum on trees to claim territories, attract mates, and signal readiness for mating. The drumming is made up of very rapid, steady strikes almost fast enough to blend into a single sound. All About Birds

A male Red-Bellied Woodpecker on an adjacent tree showing evidence for the red-belly name. "Hey, I hear you, Downy Woodpecker, nice drumming.

Then there were several Palm Warblers. Here's one.

And then, oh my duck galore.

American Wigeon pairs were happily eating and making sounds like this. Wigeons are one of the more vocal ducks - their 3 part nasal whistle sounds a bit like someone softly blowing through a kazoo. Once you listen, you'll be able to identify this duck without seeing its markings.

A male American Widgeon has a wide green postocular stripe seen when the light shines on it just right. Like this.

Two male Ring-Necked Ducks. So that ring neck identification? It's a cinnamon ring at the base of the neck, which gives the duck its name. It's a very poor field guide seen only at close range in good light. To date, I haven't seen it.

Northern Shoveler. Female and male. That beak is shovel-shaped all right.

Female

Male shoveler.

And last, a pair I've photographed over the last couple years. A mallard hybrid and a female so mixed in breed that a duck like this is referred to as "weird." (All About Birds says more about confused domestic ducks and hybrids here.

Well, I got a look at how confused-hybrid happens. These two were swimming along.)