Outdoor Ontario

Birding Reports => Toronto Reports => Topic started by: Leslie on August 17, 2010, 07:07:09 PM

Title: Small ducks on Grenadier Pond (High Park)
Post by: Leslie on August 17, 2010, 07:07:09 PM

There were 5 very small ducks in with the mallards about an hour and a half ago (5:30pm) on Grenadier Pond.  Green-winged teal is my best guess (dark caps, white throats, iridescent speculum (it looked blue to me, but they all do, especially in slanting light).  Dark legs contrasted particularly with orange legs of mallards.
There were some brown-backed swallows low over the pond in strong north wind, about half a dozen Canada geese practising short flights (in case migration appealed?), and a pair of swans going nowhere.  The bushes were full of noisy American goldfinches in brilliant summer plumage.  Didn't notice a single red-winged blackbird.

Title:
Post by: BC on August 17, 2010, 09:25:39 PM

Those are Wood Ducks. High Park has lots of them. I was looking at them yesterday.

Title:
Post by: Leslie on August 18, 2010, 11:22:33 AM

Thanks, that was my first thought.  I tried really hard to decide if they were half or 2/3 the size of the mallards, and I thought wood ducks retained eye markings even in eclipse.  Thanks for the correction.