Blue-winged Teal

It was in November 2010 when I last saw a Blue-winged Teal at Mundy Pond. At that time I didn't realize how uncommon they are to the Avalon.

It was this week when I very unexpectedly came across two female Blue-winged Teal at Second Pond. I had gone to the area in search of the Pectoral Sandpiper and was very surprised when I rounded the bend at the lagoon to find these two and a Green-winged Teal. It was very interesting to see these two birds side-by-side. The size difference is significant.

 I also didn't remember last year's birds having such a distinct eye ring. One of these birds was much darker than the other and the light patch behind the beak was really prominent.

My sighting last year lasted for only a minute or so and I wasn't able to study the "look" of the bird. On this ocassion I had ample time to look them over really well. I was struck by the shape of the bill which is wider and more sturdy than I thought. On a return trip to the lagoon I saw them again and this time observed one of them preening. The blue wing was only visible during

that time.

With hunting season in full swing I can only hope that these two great ducks make it to their southern destination safe and sound.

Afterword:  Word just came that two Blue-winged Teal were shot in the Goulds area. Pictures were viewed. It is most likely that it is these two birds as they are not commonly seen in this area.

Blue-winged Teal

It has been several days since I have seen and photographed a new bird. After a long walk at Octagon Pond yesterday where I got a fairly close shot of a Common Loon in Winter plumage, I decided to take a detour to Mundy Pond to see if there was anything special there. There was!

As soon as I walked to the edge of the pond, I spotted this tiny little duck. It looked very much like the American Black Ducks that it was mingling with but was less than half their size.

 It was also apparent that its bill was different from the others so I began shooting. I wondered if it might be a Blue-winged Teal but I couldn't see any of the blue on its plumage. This bird is known to travel over 11,000 km from its breeding ground to its wintering grounds. This female teal is a bit off course.

 They BW Teal is somewhat tame and will allow humans to approach. This one seemed quite calm while I stood nearby clicking my shutter.

Then, without notice, it just burst into flight at full speed and darted in an odd pattern across to the small lagoon located at the West end of the pond. I uploaded this very blurry shot because it is the only picture that I have that shows the teal's blue wing. I plan to revisit the site today and maybe, I will get a better flight shot.

Update:  I uploaded two new pictures on the Common Loon posting to show its Winter plumage. To access this edited posting: 1) Run a query on the Search Bar at the top of this page or 2) Visit the Bird Index listed on the top Menu Bar and scroll down to Common Loon.