Another new duck for our tiny neighborhood lake!
As I was driving the boys to school I noticed a small bird in the lake right near shore. It definitely had a shape I was not familiar with on this lake.
I returned to the lake a few minutes later and decided to make a check on the Killdeer nest first.
Just near the nest area, the Peacock owned by a resident across the street wandered by.
There was a heavy rain yesterday so I didn't stop to check on the nest but was more surprised to see no evidence at all of the Killdeer. No parents. No eggs.
Further investigation found a single egg shell near the nest but what of the other 3?
More checking will have to be done later. Maybe the foxes got them? Maybe they hatched and are hiding out? Hmmmm...
So, I figured I would try to get some other bird shots. First stop was the large Mallard brood. The one definite difference was there were now only 9 out of the 15 original ducklings.
"Psssst. Don't look now, but there is a guy taking our picture!"
Spotted the small bird I noticed earlier out near the 'bird island' near a few Mallards. Much smaller than them. Maybe half the size. Lighter in color, too. It was slowly heading toward the northern shore and I made my way around the lake to try and intercept it.
Luck was with me. The duck waded ashore and fed along the shoreline. It was in heavy shade but there was a tell-tale sign. A glint of green from under the grey-ish feathers. I was hoping for something more rare but it seems like a Green-winged Teal hen has found our humble lake.
This would be a first sighting of this species on these lakes in all these years. The light here reflects the color as a blue at this angle.
A pretty little duck.
Though she seems to be keeping an eye on overhead threats.
Not to worry. Only an Osprey looking for a meal in the shallow waters of Lake Davis.
The new bird sightings keep getting more interesting.
