Canvasbacks are supposed to be our “aristocrats of ducks” but it’s pretty hard to maintain that dignified facade when you look like this.
Note: This post will be somewhat abbreviated for reasons I mentioned yesterday.
A lot of folks never see Canvasbacks so I’m including this photo to show you what the head and neck of a male Canvasback normally look like.
Over 10 years ago (April 1, 2008) I had an experience with Canvasbacks at Glover Pond that hasn’t been repeated since. It was springtime and several of the males were feeling their oats as they fought over a female in the unique way of Canvasbacks. But the most fun I had was photographing their feeding behaviors. Canvasbacks are diving ducks and the water was fairly shallow so when they’d dive to strain mud through their bills for food they’d come up looking like…
they’d had a mud facial. He must have been sticking his entire head and neck into the mud The same thing happened again and again with this male and several others further away. In this shot I love the red eye peering through the mud mask, the muddy water dripping off his bill and the apparent attempt to look dignified that failed miserably.
To partially make up for this abbreviated post I’ll include a link to one of my first posts on Feathered Photography. It includes many photos better and more interesting than this one that illustrate both the muddy feeding behavior of Canvasbacks and the unique fighting style I mentioned earlier. If you’ve never seen it I think it’s worth the ‘trip’. Back then when I first started blogging very few folks ever saw it.
Here’s the link.
Ron
‘Happy as a duck in mud’ is a phrase I haven’t heard – but obviously should have.
I hope that your improvment escalates. Dramatically. I loved the link and am blown away by how their eye shines through apparently unaffected by the mud.
Thank you, EC. I hope so too.
Mudheads are very respected trickster clowns but I never knew any of them were ducks!!! As I’ve said mant times before, I always learn something new from you!!! Hope your feeling more comfortable….😊
Thank you, Patty. Maybe a little more comfortable but not much better…
Now that is a good picture of the life of a duck looking for food. Hope he found some bugs or worms to eat. I always wondered what the ducks look like when diving for food. Priceless to me and what a laugh.
I’m glad you thought it was funny, Trudy. So did I. I was actually laughing for much of the time I was photographing him.
I checked the other link, and realized too late that it was not a good set of pre-breakfast photos for me. That mouthful of mud… But it was also fun to see. I’ve never seen that kind of feeding behavior, leaving the head covered with mud. I once lived on a pond and in the winter had a chance to see Mergansers going after food that way, but never saw a muddy head.
Thanks, Susan. Mergansers would be going after fish so they’d be unlikely to come up with muddy heads.
What a great couple of laughs ! Thanks for the link to the older post—for sure, those battling drakes looked like lovebirds until the “vanquishing”……in today’s post,
the great big string of glop STILL ATTACHED to the bill makes for the funniest of the indignities ! I wish you the best and the SPEEDIEST resolution for your problem.
I’m glad you enjoyed both posts. Thank you, Kris.
I had to laugh, I have heard of this but not seen it! Fun post, thanks. Hope this means the meds are helping.
Thanks, Dick. Not yet I’m afraid. They told me it would probably take at least 3 days to feel any improvement.
You gave me a smile this morning. I remember this photo and it still makes me laugh. I think he is smiling too.
Smiles are good, April. Actually I’ve never posted this one before, although I have posted others that are somewhat similar to it.
Fun photos Ron. I have seen them do this, but never that muddy. That one is a classic. Hope you are feeling better.
Everett Sanborn, Prescott AZ
Thanks, Everett.
Beautiful and amusing shots! I’m glad you’re feeling well enough to post!
Thank you, Joanne.
I love it when birds just “go for it!” Glad Ol’ Muddy Head gift to keep his feeding terrieity as well. Thanks for the link.
Three words for you: Frozen. Petite. Peas. (Don’t ask me how I know…)
I may have to resort to that strategy, Marty. I had some improvement but this morning I’m back to square one.
Great shots Ron! Hope you’re better and on the road to recovery!
Charlotte
Thank you, Charlotte.
YUCK! Whata mess! They must clean up fairly easily to repeatedly get caked in the mud that way……… The older post IS deceptive with the males fighting for sure.;) They do clean up nice and are beautiful when clean. Hope things are starting to improve for you pain wise!
Yes, with the mud as wet as it was they’d simply shake it off and it would clean off nicely the next time they dove (if they didn’t stick their head in the much again). No improvement yet…
I can’t imagine what edibles all that mucking around provides. Evolution continues to amaze. Thanks for letting us see the plebian side of this aristocrat.
Lyle, they’re omnivores so they’d likely be getting invertebrates and/or vegetation (tubers and the like) from the mud.
Wow…that is one muddy head! Got to love that red eye shining through! I’ve caught Mallards and Shovelers with a muddy bill but never to this extent! I know what you mean about catching them popping up…I’ve done that with a few other species and my success rate is about 10% if that. Amazing the distance some divers swim underwater. Your linked post was very interesting…I’ve not seen that challenging behavior…I’ll have to watch for that. Hope things are reducing on the pain front.
Kathy, I was very surprised that this bird was apparently sticking its entire head and neck into the mud. I wish I had a window on their underwater world so I could actually see it.