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Panjin, Liaoning, China - Duck? (1 Viewer)

O

Owen Krout

Well-known member
United States
A very hazy day not good for IDs or photos.

I thought I knew what I had on the first one until I got home and processed some photos. The black bill and the orange bill don't fit with my field guides. Second pic is what I believe to be the same two.

Then some I noticed after getting home. In the third pic, what about that little guy on the left? Any ideas?

Lastly, a terrible shot I know, but I didn't even see it in the field. Could that be a Cotton Pygmy-Goose? Rare, but have been seen in Liaoning.
 

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Thanks for the help. I initially identified as Gadwall and I don't know why I let the orange bill bother me when I processed the images. You forced me to do the search of my images from last year that I should have done first. Sure enough found an almost identical image with better lighting from last year.

I still am not convinced on image 3, though you may be correct. Two birds are indeed Gadwall but the bird to the far left is much smaller and the head is shaped very differently. It looked very much like a possible Diver to me at the time, but the white patches on the "stern" don't fit that or any Grebe I can come up with. I saw a couple of other similar looking ducks but not well enough to ID. Hmmm.... sometimes I just have to say I don't know.
 
I think the bird on the left in #3 may be a Eurasian Teal (based on size relative to the Gadwall), but with very low confidence on this image.

I think that one of the white patches (the one on the right) is not part of the bird but a reflection from water behind the bird, the other may be the white side to the tail expected on a Teal but I'm not sure it's not something in front of the bird.
 
johnallcock said:
I think the bird on the left in #3 may be a Eurasian Teal (based on size relative to the Gadwall), but with very low confidence on this image.

I think that one of the white patches (the one on the right) is not part of the bird but a reflection from water behind the bird, the other may be the white side to the tail expected on a Teal but I'm not sure it's not something in front of the bird.
Click to expand...

Would Garganey be a possibility?
 
johnallcock said:
I think the bird on the left in #3 may be a Eurasian Teal (based on size relative to the Gadwall), but with very low confidence on this image.

I think that one of the white patches (the one on the right) is not part of the bird but a reflection from water behind the bird, the other may be the white side to the tail expected on a Teal but I'm not sure it's not something in front of the bird.
Click to expand...

Your in the same spot as me. Reflections off the water are very possible so a Eurasian Teal is a distinct possibility, but just not good enough seeing to be able to say with any confidence. The day was interesting but also frustrating with over a thousand "ducks" hidden from view 500 meters or more out in the heavy smog haze and only visible using a good polarized filter and the tele-extender. Between the two they cut out so much light that the camera was struggling. Need to practice more and improve my manual exposure skills.
 
The left bird in pic 3 is definitely not a Gadwall, nor is it a loon/diver (all Gavia species are bigger than Gadwall - well, Red-throated might have some overlap, but would still look longer, if lower in the water) or a grebe (grebes lack tail feathers, which this bird clearly has). It's a small duck, and I think not an Anas sp. with that head/bill shape... fem/juv Smew is the closest I can get, but I'm not sure because I would have thought the white throat would be more visible...

edit: just saw suggestion of Garganey. It could be, if the apparent head shape is misleading - it does have a more dabbler-like than seaduck-like rear end...
 
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