Mystery Bird Answer and Holiday Shopping Options

[The mystery bird from yesterday's post. . .A diving duck? It is diving, that's for sure. It's dark-plumaged, and those legs bright red. . .what diving duck has red legs? A scoter perhaps?]


Welcome, first of all, to Dave La Puma, the latest addition to our small cadre of bloggers here, and thanks for the rarity round-up wrap-up below!

It's holiday shopping time, and if you're stuck for a gift for the naturalist in your life, one great option is a New Jersey Audubon Gift Card, now available online on the CMBO membership page of  http://www.featheredgeoptics.com/ ! The direct link to the page is here; scroll down to find gift card options for $25, $50 or $100, redeemable at both CMBO stores as well as any New Jersey Audubon store statewide. While you're on http://www.featheredgeoptics.com/ , you might want to browse some of the binoculars,telescopes, and accessories, too.

Now, as to that mystery bird. The day was last Saturday, the place was Edwin B. Forsythe NWR along the wildlife drive, where this duck found some good foraging near one of the inlet structures to the Danzenbaker Pool, only the food was deep:

[At one time known as Red-legged Duck, American Black Ducks, though dabblers, do occasionally dive for food or to escape from predators. We later watched an adult Golden Eagle hunting American Black Ducks over the marsh north of the north dike at Forsythe.]