Hi Guys
Finally got round to posting on the blog....hope this works.
These pictures are of a duck at Redcar Tarn this morning.
When I first picked it up diving in the middle of the tarn I initially thought it was a Scaup but quickly realised there were too many features not quite right, especially when it came a little closer, the light improved and the drizzle stopped.
I quickly ruled out Scaup on head shape, back colour and it simply didn't appear as broad in the beam as Scaup usually look.
There had been a Pochard here last week but again features weren't quite right....mmmm.. immature male? .............. no, head shape didn't look right.
Lesser Scaup was tempting and I desperately tried to recall the crucial features but the black tip to the bill looked too big and I was sure that there shouldn't be a small 'bump' at the back of the head so I didn't dream for too long.
I began to suspect that it is a hybrid Pochard x Tufted and research once I got home seems to reinforce that view but I would welcome any other opinion - images at this site look very similar to this bird:
The first pictures below were taken in very poor light but the light improved for the final shot. It was remarkable how the head and neck colour appeared to change once the light improved. I had initially thought there was a purple sheen to an otherwise dark head and neck but you can see in the final shot it became much browner.
(All pictures heavily cropped but otherwise untouched)
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