Foam Lake Birding No. 11

FOAM LAKE BIRDING
No. 11
This week’s featured duck is the other green head – the Northern Shoveler. It gets the name, Shoveler, from the shape of its bill, which is flared at the end to give it the appearance of a shovel or a spoon. In fact, a common nickname for the Shoveler is Spoonbill. – a name already applied to a large tropical wading bird. Because there are other Shovelers in the tropics, this one is designated the Northern Shoveler, however, since this is the only duck of its kind around here, it will be referred to simply as the Shoveler.
The shape of its bill determines its feeding habits. Unlike the mallard, the Shoveler seldom tips over to feed. Rather, it swims low in the water with its bill partially submerged or its head entirely submerged in order to strain the water for small pond creatures and plant material. Moreover, Shovelers almost never fly out to the fields to feed on grain. Their food is obtained from shallow and usually muddy waters. Because of this, they do not make a good table bird, even though they may be legally hunted. A roasted Shoveler, not properly prepared prior to cooking, definitely tastes like it has spent time in the mud.
In birding, as with any other activity, a person should learn some specialized words and their meaning. This makes it much easier to communicate with other birders, particularly when describing birds. Readers may have noticed that at times I have used the word, beak, and at other times the word, bill. Through many years of common usage, the word, beak, is applied to those birds that can peck or tear flesh; the word, bill, is for all the rest. Birding experts (ornithologists) use the word, bill, exclusively. Feel free to use either word. They are completely interchangeable. In addition to beaks and bills, I have been using the words, breast and belly in my descriptions. The breast is the part of the bird’s underside that starts at the base of the neck and extends about one third of the way down the body; the belly covers the remaining two thirds. There will be a few more of these technical words in the future, but I do intend to keep them to a minimum. It is the intent of this column to make things easier for birders not more difficult.
How does one distinguish between a Mallard and a Shoveler? First, the Shoveler is considerably smaller. In mixed flocks this is a good field mark. Second, the bill is quite different. With its long length and bulbous end, the Shoveler’s bill looks almost too big for the size of the duck. In fact, this characteristic can be used to distinguish it from all other ducks. Third, the drakes are distinctly coloured. Once an observer gets past the green head, the rest of the duck is markedly different. The Mallard has a rich brown breast; the Shoveler has a bright white one. The Mallard has a grey belly; the Shoveler has a rich brown one. Even at a glance, a green headed duck that shows a lot of white can safely be identified as a Shoveler. A Mallard is basically grey. These distinctions are even more pronounced when the ducks are in flight. From front to back, a drake Shoveler in flight is green (head), white (breast) and brown (belly); a drake Mallard is green, brown and grey, respectively. The hens are so similar there are only non-colour distinctions that can be easily used in the field.. In mixed flocks, size can be used, as can the shape of the bill. Probably, the best way to tell them apart is to see what drakes they are “hanging around” with. Even though ducks do occasionally hybridize (crossbreed), generally speaking, they associate with their own kind – Mallards with Mallards, Shovelers with Shovelers.
Both ducks are very common and quite often can be seen from a vehicle in potholes along roadsides. Today’s photo shows several Shovelers feeding in characteristic fashion with a Franklin’s Gull in the foreground.

Foam Lake Birding No. 10

FOAM LAKE BIRDING
No. 10
In the first nine articles I wrote exclusively about “back yard” birds. Hopefully, this will pique interest in birds and birding among both, beginners and the experienced. There are many more “backyard” birds, but they will have to wait until later. For the rest of the summer, I intend to do what many like doing – spending time near water. In my case, I will be writing about birds of lakes, sloughs and swamps.
I like to clump water birds into three groups: song birds of the reeds and bushes, long legged wading birds, and birds that spend time on the water itself. When water birds are mentioned, probably, the birds that first come to mind are ducks. Therefore, I will begin this series with ducks.
Ducks can be separated into two categories by the way they feed when on the water itself. Those that tip up with their tails in the air and/or their heads under water in search of food are called dabblers; those that go under water completely are called divers. As a result, divers are usually found on deeper and more open bodies of water; dabblers on shallower more secluded areas. Divers nest on the water on rafts made of reeds; dabblers nest in fields and pastures quite some distance from water. Dabblers will be featured in this and the next column.
Choosing the first duck was very easy. The Mallard is the most populous and well known duck, not only around here, but in the world. It occurs naturally throughout the northern hemisphere and has been introduced to places like Australia! The drake has a dark green head, rich brown breast and grey belly; the hen is an overall brown and looks like many other female ducks. The drakes make a reedy “yeeb” sound, while the hens make the familiar “quack” that is associated with ducks in general. Hens of several other species make the same “quack” sound, but no drakes do. In the summer, when the drakes molt to the same colours as the hens, it is best to tell them apart by their vocalizations. Mallards of both sexes have a distinctive bright, dark blue wing patch (speculum) bordered on two sides by white that is most visible when the birds are in flight. Mallards, also, have the peculiar trait of occasionally nesting in a previous year’s crow’s nest! The newly hatched ducklings jump out of their nest and tumble to the ground unhurt. Then, they follow the mother to the nearest water. Today’s picture shows “mom” with seven youngsters in tow. The three ducklings in front belong to another species altogether.
The Mallard is one of our largest ducks that feeds on grain as well as pond creatures. Ask any grain farmer. Because of its size and eating habits, the Mallard was domesticated many centuries ago. In many parts of Europe and Asia, it is a popular source of meat much like the turkey is in North America. Due to selective breeding the Mallard, like chickens, geese and turkeys, has increased in size to the point where it is incapable of sustained flight. Furthermore, it now comes in a variety of colours in addition to the familiar green head. These non-mallard looking varieties even have their own name – Pekin Duck . Except for the Muscovy, it is believed that all domestic ducks come from the Mallard! In the wild, the goose-sized Muscovy lives in the American tropics.
In what appears to be a trend, I must point out that another duck, the Northern Shoveler, is somewhat similar to a Mallard. The drakes of both species have green heads, which is confusing to beginning birders. I will be writing about it in next week’s column, meanwhile, find yourself a slough and see if you can identify both. Keep in mind, there are twelve different kinds of ducks that are common in our area.