ML111279031

Age and sex

Unknown age, Female - X

Media notes

This female Canvasback was found and photographed by Curtis A. Marantz on 11 August 2018 at the Whitewater River delta, north end Salton Sea, Riverside County, California.

Observation details

I spotted this bird while scanning through the Redhead flock on the water just west of the river mouth relatively early in our visit, after which I studied it briefly and took a few distant photos as documentation. I then lost the Canvasback for quite some time before again seeing it in about the same place I had seen it earlier. This was a medium-sized duck that was roughly comparable to the Redhead in its size and shape, yet it had a more peaked crown, a strongly sloping forehead, and what seemed to be a longer bill. As I recall, the body was at least relatively plump, and the neck was short and inconspicuous, but I did not carefully study the bird’s structure apart from that of the head. I likewise studied the plumage relatively superficially, yet I noted that this bird was a warm, light-brown color overall, albeit maybe a little more grayish on the upperparts yet a somewhat warmer shade of brown throughout the head. I also noted no obvious markings on the head or even the upperparts, but I never saw this bird spread its wings. The bill and eyes were both quite dark.

Technical information

Model

Canon EOS 7D Mark II

Lens

EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM

ISO

800

Focal length

400 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire, auto

f-stop

f/6.3

Shutter speed

1/1000 sec

Dimensions

419 pixels x 311 pixels

Original file size

244.73 KB