Fudge Duck

Feeling bad about missing my WeBS count on sunday because I was off twitching, I decided to head up to Girton Pits and do it this morning (better late than never). Most of my time there passed uneventfully, although there were good numbers of Lapwing and Golden Plover, and a handful of Dunlin, in the sheep fields.

I rounded things off with a look at the Spalford Pit, flushing most of the duck out from the southern edge into the middle of the pit as I arrived - which was accidental, but did make counting them easier. Halfway through, I noticed an interesting duck; fairly small, with a long bill, peaked crown and clean, sharply demarcated white undertail coverts. I finished my count and then fetched my camera, by which time, unfortunately, the bird had swum further away and gone to sleep.

Pretty sure it was a Ferruginous Duck, I called Carl for a second opinion, who arrived a short time later. We spent at least an hour watching the bird, to confirm the ID, getting periodic views of it with its head up and in flight briefly (when it showed a nice white belly patch and white wing bar), before it swam to shore to sleep some more. During this time, I got a some record shots (heavily cropped and awful even by my standards), which hopefully show most of the salient features... but it was quite distant and against the light for most of the time (usual excuses). I'm still not sure if it is a 1st winter or a female, but there was nothing we noted to suggest it was a hybrid. One thing we couldn't see was if it was sporting any bling...

 

 

Ferruginous Duck at Girton Pits

 

 

Whilst waiting for the Fudge Duck to do something at one point, Carl scanned the flooded field to the north and picked out a Ruff amongst the Lapwing, and a Willow Tit called nearby - this species still hangs on in the Trent Valley.