The weather this morning was as nice as forecast, and I took the low-wind opportunity to join the Milwaukee Birders as they look for ducks on the waterfront in the Port Washington Coal Dock Park.
They kicked off the event with a visit to the peregrine falcon nesting box atop the Port Washington power plant, and we were happy to find someone home. A second bird soon showed up, and then things really got crazy when a third falcon arrived. We don’t know if it was a grab for the nesting box, for a mate, or both, but the three of them really put on quite the airshow as they sorted it out.
The aerial performance eventually petered out, we began our search for ducks, and we didn’t have to go far. The narrow channel that runs between the Memorial Pavilion and the Avian Sanctuary was full of them. Most were mallards, but there was at least one redhead, …
a red-breasted merganser, …
or two, …
a common goldeneye hen, …
and even a tiny bufflehead hen.
There were plenty of more of the same in the rest of the water around the park, but some folks were itching for something a little more exotic, so we headed to the north side of the port so we could walk out to the Port Washington Breakwater Lighthouse. That’s where I found this little cutie.
At first, its size and coloration made me think that it was another bufflehead hen, but if you look at the previous picture, they only have one white mark on the side of their head, not the two that this one does. After hearing about them for years, I had a suspicion of who it might be, but I double checked with the merlin app on my phone before I let myself get too excited. Sure enough, this darling is my very first harlequin duck (Histrionicus histrionicus) and a hen.
The Great Lakes don’t even get a blip of color on their range map, but they are observed here from time to time, and today just happened to be one of those times. Woo Hoo!
Finally, some clouds are forecast to roll in overnight, but they should also bring a warm-up with them, so tomorrow should be a good morning for our weekly wildlife walk, and we’ll do our best to avoid as much mud on the river trails as possible. Come on out to see if the next spring migrant has arrived.
Signs of Life in Estabrook Park 
Encouraged by your post, Monday afternoon I went over to that spot at Estabrook and the Red-breasted Merganser was still there. I had the same experience that he wasn’t shy and you could almost step on him. When I looked at the pictures, he seems to have a 4 inch piece of fishing line hanging from his bill. I hope it’s not a hook too.
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