ML455016581

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Behaviors

Foraging or eating

Observation details

One female(?) on Flathead Lake off Wayfarers Park. Obvious diving duck behavior and shape (not a grebe or loon), white flanks that extended all the way back to the tail (which eliminated goldeneyes and scaups) and didn't stretch forward to the chest (eliminating buffleheads and mergansers). White cheek spot also evident and a faint white collar. I never expected to see one here, so I pored over my guide for a while. I didn't have a good camera on me at the time, so all I have is some crappy digi-scoped shots on my phone. I'm not sure how to attach them to this report in the phone app, but I will add those once I'm home on my computer! EDIT: I found the duck again later while kayaking and got much better pictures with my good camera - I'm positive on the ID now! I have added some photos to confirm. I also believe it is actually a male, due to the pink on the tip of the bill, even though I didn't see the characteristic long tail. Maybe it was a juvenile or molting?

Technical information

Original file size

110.1 KB