More ducks!

I guess I am getting to see a fall migration after all, because here is yet another new duck trying to catch some zzzzs beside the water. I couldn’t get very close, so the images aren’t too great, but the dark, wide, horizontal band around the eye marks the one on the right as a male Eurasian green-winged teal (Anas crecca) in winter (eclipse) plumage. Despite the name, it is not a very close cousin to the blue-winged teals (Spatula discors) we see in Estabrook Park. They are both in the subfamily Anatinae, the dabbling ducks.

The Pedia of Wik claims, without evidence I might add, that “the bird gives its name to the blue-green colour [sic] teal,” instead of the other way around, if you can believe it. Anyway, here’s another scene, slightly down stream, with a little more action.

Meanwhile, the Eurasian widgeon was back, and he brought a lot of buddies with him.

Plus, here are a couple of tufted ducks, which we haven’t see for a while. Whatever the one on the right is shouting is making the one on the left’s head feathers stand up.

Finally, there are still plenty of gadwalls hanging around.

It will be fun to see which ones stay for the winter, and which ones are just passing through.