Mallard
medium confidenceAnas platyrhynchos
A loafing group of dabbling ducks along a gravel and limestone pond edge. Several individuals show classic female/eclipse Mallard traits: mottled buff-and-brown body feathers with dark centers, a blue speculum bordered in white on the folded wing, orange legs and feet, and a dark-smudged orange-olive bill. At least two birds in the group (notably the one in the lower left and one on the stone slab) look instead like female Wood Ducks, with a smaller dark grey-brown head, slight crest, and a bold white teardrop-shaped eye patch — suggesting a mixed-species gathering at this lily-pad pond.
Other possibilities:
- Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) — Two or three individuals show the white teardrop eye surround, crested head shape and glossy iridescent wing patch typical of hen Wood Ducks, indicating a mixed flock.
- American Black Duck (Anas rubripes) — Overlaps in range with Mallard and shows similar dark mottled plumage with orange legs; hybrids and dull females can be hard to separate at this distance.
- Mottled Duck (Anas fulvigula) — Another Mallard-complex species with uniformly mottled brown plumage and a blue speculum, though the habitat and vegetation here look more northern.
2026-08-23