COBirders, A bit of armchair birding on my part. There have been several migrant waterfowl reported in Boulder County this weekend. In addition, a male Mexican Duck has been reported at Hecla Lake in Lafayette. I'm not sure if a Mexican Duck is considered to be a migrant, vagrant or resident in Northern Colorado in November, but it's a good bird in any respect.
While I've yet to see this bird in person, I've seen some excellent photos on eBird. There has been quite a bit of chatter regarding the slightly curled tail feathers (upper tail coverts), which I've often heard are evidence of Mallard genes. A little bit of Googling revealed several excellent articles on the topic, among them: a 2012 essay in Colorado Birds <http://web.corral.tacc.utexas.edu/UAF/arctos/mediaUploads/demboski/In_the_Scope_CB_October_2012.pdf> by Tony Leukering and Steve Mlodinow arguing for full species status for Mexican Duck. (The AOS split Mallard and Mexican Duck in 2020.) Jack Bushong wrote a thorough article <https://www.aba.org/mexican-duck/> on the field identification of Mexican Ducks for the ABA website, which also has a terrific photo essay <https://www.aba.org/mexican-duck-photo-essay/> by Steve Mlodinow. Steve argues that "pure" Mexican Ducks *can* exhibit Mallard-like features, like the curly tail feathers. So how comfortable can we be in identifying Mexican Ducks in Northern Colorado? I'd be interested to learn what others have to say on this topic. But one thing is certain -- we should all brush up on the differences between these two species and make an effort to document sightings in eBird, particularly with photos, keeping in mind that selecting "Mallard/Mexican Duck" is a good option when one is not certain. If the links embedded in the post don't work, here are the URLs: *Leukering/Mlodinow* - http://web.corral.tacc.utexas.edu/UAF/arctos/mediaUploads/demboski/In_the_Scope_CB_October_2012.pdf *Bushong* - https://www.aba.org/mexican-duck/ *Mlodinow* - https://www.aba.org/mexican-duck-photo-essay/ Good birding, Peter Burke Managing Editor, Colorado Birds edi...@cobirds.org -- -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en?hl=en * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/CFO/Membership/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CACjv0GZEp6uBONsNk2vJEVLo1bODh%2BPG12KSJjgAeq%2Bgfw7L4A%40mail.gmail.com.
