May 20, 2018 - Ducks at Lake Como

I’m taking a break from posting my Costa Rica photos, so I can feature some ducks that I photographed in Minnesota. As ducks migrate north to their nesting grounds, they need open water on which to rest and feed. Lake Como is located in St. Paul, Minnesota, not far from where we live in Shoreview. It’s a shallow lake so the ice melts earlier than it does on some of the larger, deeper lakes. That concentrates the ducks and other waterfowl on this lake as they wait for more northerly lakes to become ice-free. It also gives nature photographers a chance to photograph these birds.

This is a male Ring-necked Duck. It’s a medium-sized duck, about 17 inches long. The ring around its bill is more prominent but it also has a brownish ring around its neck. This duck has its neck stretched out, so the ring is barely visible where its neck meets its body.

DuckRingneckedmaleComoLakePaul20180424

Ruddy Ducks are small diving ducks, about 15 inches long. Their nesting area is west of where we live so we only get to see them during migration. Most of them were resting, like these four males.

DuckRuddymalesleepingComoLakePaul20180424

Here’s a photo of an alert male Ruddy Duck. His rusty body and black and white head make it easy to identify but his most prominent feature is the bright blue bill. His spiky tail is often held up in the air when he is swimming.

DuckRuddymaleComoLakePaul20180424

Male and female ducks often look very different from each other and this female Ruddy Duck is a good example of that. The spiky tail held up in the air is the only clue that she goes with the bird in the last photo.

DuckRuddyfemaleComoLakePaul20180424

There were, of course, some Mallards on the lake. This male Mallard is striking an elegant pose for me. Mallards are a common sight here in summer so it’s hard to know if this one is migrating through or intends to be a resident on Lake Como.

MallardComoLakePaul20180424

This is the only male Red-breasted Merganser that I saw when I was there. At 23 inches, it’s one of our largest ducks. I’m always amused by the long, thin feathers sticking out from the back of its head, giving it a “bad hair day” look. That long, thin bill with its serrated edges is very helpful in gripping the slippery fish that it likes to eat.

MerganserRedbreastedmaleComoLakePaul20180424

Even a duck gets the urge to scratch an itch once in a while.

MerganserRedbreastedmalescratchingComoLakePaul20180424