Ornithology a branch of Zoology

With the sun beaming hard, a walk on the beach, and no tundra Swans,the birding trip felt as though fall was just beginning. Today we focused on water birds, and some good water birds we did find. At hook pond we contrasted the east end routine water species, mallard ducks, and mute swans with the new species we were inquiring to see. Right off the bat Julia confused the American Black duck with the female Mallard. However, apparently her confusion was quite impressive because American Black Ducks are confusion species with the female mallard. We quickly learned that female Mallards have lighter bodies which is the same molted streaking of brown on the head.

I was able to add the American Black Duck along with 9 more species to my life list:

Hooded Merganster (easily identifiable with the males large white patch on its crest)

Pied-billed Grebe (Small water bird, great divers, with dark brown body and head)

Mocking Bird (a common bird and i had the delight of seeing)

Laughing Gull (He stood on one foot as Doc laghed to give as a hint about the species)

Wilson's Snipes: I felt honored to see these guys. Wilson's snipes blend into their surroundings and rarely are out in the open. Not just one, but we had the honor of observing 3 Wilson's sniped at the side of the road. This shorebird has an extraordinary long bill, (i would say 3/4 its body length) short legs, brown with bold stripes on back and head.

Green winged teal (iridescent green stripe on wing, male brown and green head)

Norther Shovelers (beautiful shuffle like beaks)

Ruddy Duck (small duck with its large white cheek patches and black caps making them easy to identify)

It was also quite enjoyable to see my Belted Kingfisher friend chilling in the trees, observe 8 royal terns looking fly, and to have the pleasant accompaniment of the myrtle warblers song.

I also utilized my ears to aid me with the identification of Canada geese or double-crested cormorant flocks. The geese are easily identified by their annoying constant noises and fly in a flock with a tighter V shape.