Bird Board
Long-tailed Ducks Spotted at the Boynton Inlet
Yesterday in the late afternoon I was about to leave when I noticed two ducks in the water by the jetty where the ocean meets the intracoastal waters. Bird was far and lighting not optimal. I could see them in my binoculars briefly and they looked about the size of a Razorbill to me. I noticed them diving quickly under and coming back a few minutes later. Got a couple not-so-great ID shots before the birds dove under again and did not resurfaced for over 10 minutes and I gave up. I believe this to be the first record for Palm Beach County. Seems that on Ebird they start showing up (or being noticed) in early to mid November in and around Merritt Island (2hrs driving from Boynton Beach). I thank A&M, Brian Hope, and others for their help with the correct ID! Had never seen one in my life....until yesterday.
Comments
Nice sighting, Marcello, but not a Palm Beach County record by a long shot. According to "The Birdlife of Florida" by Stevenson and Anderson, a specimen was collected in Lake Worth on March 6, 1899!
Hi Brian,
You've just shattered my dreams!:) I'll have to settle for the 106 years and 7 month second record on the species with a silver medal. But wait.... I had two birds at one point in my binoculars - isn't it the highest number record on the species???:)
nice spot Marcello-miss your great pics
That link doesn't work. Do you have a better link?
Thanks, Bill. Unfortunately, this rare duck was not my best shots. I have a lot of action shots that I'm proud of it though. After you see these ID shots look for better images on my Flickr page.
Hi Toe,
Thanks for the heads up!
You can see my photos at:
Flickr.com/mcsg65
Best,
Marcello
Hi Toe,
You are right! When you click the link above from the TAS bird board the link is not operating correctly but it has something to do with the TAS page. How do I know? I went on the net and typed the address: flickr.com/mcsg65 (outside of TAS page) and it takes you right to my page where you can peruse my photos.
One can ALSO copy the address above and paste on the address box and the link works too! I just tried and it works. The link always worked directly from the TAS pages when I was posting more frequently.
Let me know if it works for you and the birding nation in South Florida (and beyond) of course!
Best,
Marcello Gomes
BINGO!!!!! For some reason it had something to do with my bellsouth email above. When I was prompted with a problem with that email the link works like magic now:)
Wow! That's very exciting, Marcello. Congratulations, and thanks for sharing your awesome photos!
Best,
Jeanne
While some have disagreed with the ID photo on the bird suggesting it to be a Gull I just wanted to clarify that on that day we had 300 plus gulls at the Inlet. The two small birds that resembled a small diving duck/razorbill type bird size were there on the same spot where the shot was taken. I aimed the camera because I saw the bird and if this Gull was nearby that was an honest mistake. What kind of small diving ducks/ birds that follow schools of fish and dive down not coming up for over 10 minutes is the mystery I'd like to solve. I still appreciate the help I got from renowned birders in the field. If I could not take a correct photo is because these 2 birds were not in a mood of cooperation by being busy diving and hunting for food underwater. For your information, I even moved to a closer location so I could attempt a better shot but the birds would not resurface in the 10 plus minutes I had there and had to go home. Life goes on and I remain very positive because that is who I am. If you want to comment, please do so to my email above as I am not responding on this matter on my Flickr page ( only members can write there). I'm wondering what kind of diving birds were they in our waters this time of the year. Don't have time for regrets. I have yet to meet a birder that doesn't make a mistake. My point of view ...The show will go on and I'll find something else amazing. Just a question of time.
Why don't you post the other three photos of the diving duck? This would help to I.D. the bird, one photo from a tough angle makes it really hard.
Hi Larry,
I'd have no problem posting the other 2 or 3 photos but the other ones are the same angle with even less details as a small wave covered the birds body. Do you still want them? Not going to help solve the problem. If I thought they could I'd have post them.
Thanks for trying to help, Larry!
Marcello
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