|
English
and Scientific names: |
White- winged Scoter
Melanitta fusca |
|
Number
of individuals: |
2, One presumed adult male,
one juvenile. |
|
Locality:
LOUISIANA: |
Cameron |
|
Specific
Locality: |
In Gulf waters south of Holleyman Sheehee Sanctuary. |
|
Date(s)
when observed: |
Dec, 7 1991 |
|
Time(s)
of day when observed: |
1:00 PM |
|
Reporting
observer and address: |
Hubert Hervey, Stonewall, LA. |
|
Other observers
accompanying reporter who also identified the bird(s): |
none |
|
Other observers who
independently identified the bird(s) |
Jim Stewart has records of mixed specie Scoter flocks of this
size, but I don't know the dates or locations. Personal comment. |
|
Light conditions
(position of bird in relation to shade and to direction and amount of light): |
Cloudy and windy, birds back-lit if lit at all. |
|
Optical
equipment: |
60 X Swift Scope, and 10 X binoculars. |
|
Distance
to bird(s): |
150 to 200 yards guestimate |
|
Duration
of observation: |
Over an hour. |
|
Habitat:
|
On Gulf of Mexico, bobbing and diving on the water, feeding I
guess. |
|
Behavior
of bird: |
This large flock of 40 Scoters of all the species were content
to move around actively on and under the surface of the water, with a bird in
view one wave crest and difficult to locate after disappearing in the trough.
I first ID'd the Black Scoters, birds with no white visible to me, then I
ID\'d the Surf Scoters with huge yellow bill and white on face on/or bill,
then I was left with 2 birds after nearly an hour that I determined to be a
White-winged Scoter |
|
Description: |
Male with white in the wing speculum area or secondaries, and a
white eye or eye spot, and an immature bird with a white in the secondaries,
and white on the side of the face. No difference in size or behavior
could be determined between species. Large black bodied ducks, obviously at
home in the rough gulf waters with the features described specifically above. |
|
Voice: |
None heard |
|
Similar species: |
Black and Surf eliminated as described above as all 3 species
were present. |
|
Photographs or tape
recordings obtained? |
None |
|
Previous experience with
this species: |
None |
|
Identification
aids: |
Petersons, Flight Guide to Ducks and Geese. |
|
This
description is written from: |
Limited notes and mostly memory |
|
Are you positive of your
identification? If not, explain: |
Yes |
|
Date
and time: |
7 Dec 1991 |