Lower Suwannee Waterfowl, Part 2

White Ibises, Green-winged Teal, Great Egret

Three more visits to the freshwater pond have failed to sight any more ducks, and recent rains have filled the pond, perhaps making it less desirable for feeding ducks. 

Fortunately, Tom Liebert has been kind enough to send along some additional photos. Lacking a long lens he was unable to get close-up images, but nevertheless I am reasonably confident I can identify three waterfowl species. They are green-winged teal (Anas crecca), bufflehead (Bucephala albeola), and lesser scaup (Aythya affinis). The scaup are no surprise as we have often spotted them in brackish water near Cedar Key. Additional species may have been present, but the images do not permit positive identification.

It may be next year before we again get the fantastic panorama of wildlife, including hundreds of ibises, that we saw on the pond last December. It is certain, however, that in the future we will be keeping our eyes out for them.