Tag Archives: Outdoors

The male common eider (Somateria mollissima) presents a somewhat strange appearance, not likely to be confused with that of any other species.

The male king eider (Somateria spectabilis) is a bird that is guaranteed to make an impression. Whether he is gaudy or beautiful depends on your perspective.

At a glance, the lesser scaup (Aythya affinis) resembles a miniature greater scaup. However, it does display some unique characteristics.

When seeing the greater scaup (Aythya marila), the overall impression is that of a big, thickset duck.

When you first encounter the male ring-necked duck (Aythya collaris), you may be surprised to find that he has no obvious ring on his neck.

The redhead duck (Aythya americana) may at first glance resemble the larger canvasback. However, its appearance is actually quite distinctive.

Once you are familiar with the distinctive characteristics of the male canvasback (Aythya valisineria), you should have no problem identifying it even at a great distance.