ML646724398

Observation details

**rare; this would be the first RI record on ebird and the second in southern New England. [updating from duck sp. after relocating the bird the next day and corroborating my initial assessment.] I'm not experienced with this hybrid, and it is very rare (only a few New England ebird records and a few dozen ABA records), so I'm leaving this as duck sp. for now while I consult some second opinions. Before putting my binoculars on it, my initial impression from a distance was that this individual was an AMWI tucked into a Gadwall flock. Once I got binoculars on it, I soon realized something was awry. Gadwall x AMWI occurred to me in the field simply based on the apparent combination of traits, but I hadn't yet looked at any records of this hybrid (nor did I know how scarce records of it are). Based on my initial investigation, I do think this individual is a decent candidate. The head doesn't show the boxy Gadwall shape; the bill appears more wigeon-like in structure and the upper mandible exhibits an intermediate color pattern with the silvery-blue sheen of AMWI along the sides and remnant's of the Gadwall's black bill down the middle (this intermediate pattern is typical in records of this hybrid). The pinkish-brown breast shows more AMWI influence as do the faint peach-ish tones on the gray flanks that otherwise show more Gadwall influence. The duck overall was noticeably a paler gray with--in some lighting--a pinkish aspect compared to the darker gray of the surrounding male Gadwalls. A white rump patch is also evident although reduced in prominence compared to that of a typical AMWI, and the tertials with black outer webs and white edging also reflects AMWI influence. Perhaps the most nagging feature as far as clinching this ID goes is the head/face pattern. In the lighting I had and in the shots I took, there isn't a very conspicuous AMWI face stripe pattern as there are in some of the other documented records of this hybrid. But there appears to be a wide range of head patterns, including individuals without a prominent face stripe (see, e.g., https://birdhybrids.blogspot.com/2014/03/gadwall-x-american-wigeon.html). Nevertheless, faint traces of a green patch around the eye are visible, and in the shots where the duck is facing down, a muted AMWI-style crown pattern is visible. Update after relocating the bird the next morning: seen in different light, the face stripe pattern of AMWI is more apparent, though still muted. Depending on the angle and lighting, the stripe shows dark green or more brown/maroon tones. During my second observation, some traces of what looked like AMWI's face/throat speckling were visible, which had not been as pronounced the previous day. (See the media here: https://ebird.org/checklist/S288126941)