Silver and gold

  

Two views of a Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola) near Spud Point Marina on 20 February 2026.  The late afternoon light was just right for highlighting the iridescent feathers (above).

 

 

Make way...

  

Mallard duckling (Anas platyrhynchos) along the Cotati Creek trail on 28 March 2025.

Avian miscellany

 

 

I didn't have much time to focus on bird photos during our Iceland trip, but here are a few incidental sightings.  Above, a White Wagtail (Motacilla alba).

 

 

Northern Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe)

 

 

 

  Redwing (Turdus iliacus)

 

 

  Eurasian Oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus)

 

 

 

  Whooper Swans (Cygnus cygnus)

 

 

 

 Tufted Duck (Aythya fuligula)

In the lee

  

Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula) at sunset in Bodega Harbor, 13 February 2023.

On and around the rocks

 

 

Purple Sandpipers (Calidris maritima) hunkered down in Scituate, Massachusetts, on 11 December 2022.

 

While trying to photograph the sandpipers, a duck appeared in a pool below them:

 

 

 

Fun to watch this Harlequin Duck (Histrionicus histrionicus) diving and spilling over the edge of the pool.  

Although these birds were a bit distant, here's a closer view of her:

 

 

 

Snorkeling in Bodega Harbor

  

We spotted these snorkeling Common Mergansers (Mergus merganser) in Bodega Harbor when leaving work today (18 March 2022).  Common Mergansers are fish-eaters and "visual pursuit predators" — when you see them swimming in this position, they're actively searching under water for prey:

 

 

 

Here's a closer look at the male:

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the female:

 

 

 

Maybe they found some sticklebacks in the eelgrass?

Pardon me...

 

 

...coming through!

 

A Gray Whale (Eschrichtius robustus) surfaces among Surf Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata) on 12 March 2022.  The whales are on their way north to Alaska.

 

All dressed up...

 

 

A quick shot of a Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola) in Bodega Harbor on 6 March 2022.  I thought this Bufflehead was looking pretty sharp in his black-and-white "duxedo."  (A "duxedo," you ask?  You know, a duck tuxedo!)

Along the beach

  

Long-tailed Duck (Clangula hyemalis) at Duxbury Beach, MA, on 14 December 2021.

Synchronized swimmers

   

Driving along the Bodega Harbor shoreline this afternoon, these ducks caught my eye.  

Here's a view from the side while they were feeding with their heads submerged:

 

 

 

Sometimes I see Northern Shovelers (Spatula clypeata) on the east side (Doran Beach side) of Bodega Harbor, but I haven't noticed them as often on the west side.  Perhaps they were trying to find a more sheltered spot out of the wind today?

 

 

 

 

Northern Shovelers aren't known to nest commonly in Sonoma County, so these birds will probably be leaving the coast soon (for inland breeding sites) or perhaps they're considering staying somewhere local?

 

Ruddy or not

  

Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis) resting at the north end of Bodega Harbor, 20 April 2021.

A not-so-long tail

  

Birders have been reporting two Long-tailed Ducks (Clangula hyemalis) in Bodega Harbor near Porto Bodega, so I swung by there this afternoon (13 January 2021) after a stop at the post office.  They weren't too hard to find, but they were a little distant, so this is the best photo I have.  Long-tailed Ducks are rare winter visitors to this area.  (Males have very long tails when in breeding plumage.)

My eyes were also drawn to some intriguing patterns on the surface of the water close to shore.  [You can click on the image for a larger version.]

 

 

Ringing in the new year

 

 

We had some nice views of a small group of Ring-necked Ducks (Aythya collaris) in Petaluma this afternoon (1 January 2021).  The reflections of the shoreline vegetation in the water surrounding the ducks were amazing.

 

 

 

 

 

Morning paddle

 

 

I helped out with the Western Sonoma County Christmas Bird Count today (27 December 2020).  Here's a quick shot from the morning — a nice group of Green-winged Teal (Anas carolinensis) and Northern Pintail (Anas acuta).  [Five teal and three pintails, the lower left bird is a female pintail.]

 

Late afternoon swim

  

Len wrote wondering whether the goldeneye I showed in last night's post might show some characteristics of a hybrid — Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula) x Barrow's Goldeneye (Bucephala islandica).  So I paused in the area again today and looked around a bit.  I only saw individuals that looked like Common Goldeneyes, but the ducks were a little closer to shore, so here's a better photo of a Common Goldeneye.  [That's a Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis) in the background.]

Morning swim

  

Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula), Bodega Harbor, 14 December 2020

Sunset dinner

 

Sunset over Bodega Harbor, with Brant (Branta bernicla), various ducks, probably some American Coots (Fulica americana), and a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) feeding among the Eelgrass (Zostera marina).

Harbor reflections

 

Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula) at the north end of Bodega Harbor on 10 December 2019.

The light was a bit dim, but the patterns and reflections on the water drew my eye:

 

Below is a comparison of two goldeneyes and a Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola).  Although both species are dominantly black and white, the placement of white on their heads is different.  The goldeneyes have a smaller white spot in front of the eye, while the Buffleheads have a larger white patch behind the eye and wrapping around the back of the head (females of both species are brown and have different patterning than the males):

 

 

Monet with merganser?

 

We took a short walk in the Quarryhill Botanical Garden in Glen Ellen this afternoon (23 November 2019).  There was nice fall light, and a view of a Hooded Merganser (Lophodytes cucullatus) in the lower pond.  The effect of the lighting and reflections reminded me of a Monet!

 

Along the creek

Whew, it's been a hectic few days.  I'm so sorry that so many people in Sonoma County are having such a difficult time right now.  Yesterday (27 October 2019) we evacuated due to wildfire concerns and drove to Davis, CA.  Today I went for a short walk in the UC Davis Arboretum.  I've been on edge since the fire started, but walking today helped a lot.  I finally felt like I could take a deeper breath.

With the hope that some nice photos will help other people, too, here are a few images from Putah Creek this afternoon:

 

 Green Heron (Butorides virescens)

 

 Wood Duck (Aix sponsa)

 

 Bushtit (Psaltriparus minimus)

 

 Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)

P.S.  A world of thanks to all of the firefighters and the incredible team of people who have been working so hard to fight the Kincade Fire and to coordinate and communicate with everyone in the community.  Our appreciation is hard to express.