Wednesday 17 April 2013

Wild Bird Wednesday 40 - Pink-eared Duck.

My recent trip to Perth gave me a chance (after work, just in case the boss is reading!) to get some images of Pink-eared Duck.  This small duck - about 40 cm long - is a delight to watch, but I had never managed to get any decent images before.

There were a number of these ducks loafing about on the shore and sitting on half submerged logs.  They were not so used to people that they would stay put, but they were not so nervous as to swim off. A cautious approach allowed me to get close enough to get plenty of shots.   As my colleagues were sitting on the grass, I had to cut the trip short.

Later on when they saw the pictures, one of them said "It looks like it as a pink highlighter pen mark on its head" - which is the kind of thing that they should put in guide books!


This duck goes by the scientific name of Malacorhynchus membranaceus - which "soft beak, membrane" - which is a decent description of the beak - large and broader at the tip, which is soft.  See, there is meaning in all this latin and greek sounding stuff!




The females are a little smaller than the males - but the difference is not great enough for you to tell the difference in the field - I assume you need a duck in the hand to do that!

Now its your turn.  Use the link below to join in WBW.  Remember - visit, comment and invite - the more the merrier.

Now a plea - PLEASE link to your actual post, not just your general blog address - it does save me a bit of time and PLEASE consider getting rid of word verification if you have it turned on, seeing half blurred images and microscopic numbers drains me of the will to live!

54 comments:

  1. what a cool duck! soft, eraser beak and pink highlighter eyeshadow! :)

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  2. A great way of celebrating WBW 40 with these wonderful photos of this cute duck!

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  3. What excellent shots, Stewart! I love the pink highlighter.

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  4. Aptly named, although the pink is a bit forward of the ears, I assume. At least the pink is there, unlike our Ring-necked Ducks and Red-bellied Woodpeckers which require a close look with a magnifying glass to verify the presence of their namesake markings!

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  5. Wow, I am so impressed with your images of this (new to me) duck! Loving the zebra looking stripes and that pink eye mark is awesome!

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  6. Wow, they are really beautiful!!

    I havent joined WBW for a long time, but here I am again :))

    ps If you want to see my WBW post you have to schroll a little bit, because it is a post from yesterday :)ds

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  7. Awesomely handsome (or pretty which ever the case may be :) ducks. Yet another duck unknown to me. There is a different duck in the background of the first picture ... what are they? You are so fun ... I am either learning a whole lot of new stuff from you or I am finding out how little I really know ... which ever, I am loving it! Great 40th post, Stewart.

    Andrea @ From The Sol

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  8. Oh I love that little spot of pink, it goes so well with the black and white stripes! Great shots Stewart.

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  9. How cool! I've never seen one of those!

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  10. What a cool looking duck, Stewart. Your photos are so crisp - love seeing all the detail.

    And two thumbs up on getting rid of word verifications! ;-)

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  11. How did i miss those while I was there?

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  12. Lovely little ducks to see Stewart

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  13. They really make you look twice at them, so much detail on them. From Findlay

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  14. They look as if they are off to a party with that splash of colour, lovely shots Stewart.


    peter

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  15. Quite fetching with that little pink highlight. Wonder if the male gets ribbed about his eye makeup? :)
    I like the pattern of the feathers too. They make a nice reflection in the water.
    Lovely captures Stewart!

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  16. What an unusual duck Stewart, beautiful marking, and it looks to have a bill very much like out Shoveler.
    All the best Gordon.

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  17. What an unusual duck Stewart, beautiful marking, and it looks to have a bill very much like out Shoveler.
    All the best Gordon.

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  18. That pink highlight is just perfect. What pretty ducks!

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  19. What an amazing duck that is! It's unlike anything I've seen before. Beautifully photos Stewart - well done mate!!

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  20. Great photos of the ducks and very nice to get close-enough for such detailed photos.

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  21. they DO look like pink highlighter marks!

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  22. great opportunity to pickup some quick snapshots of these beautiful ducks; lucky find for you Stewart. I've not seen them before ...looks like they had a great little spot

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  23. Okay, now I REALLY AM jealous. I want these in America?!!! :::wondering how we can import them here:::

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  24. Wonderful pictures Stewart!Exellent shots!!They are so beautiful!Have a lovely day!
    Dimi..

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  25. Hi Stewart! I love these ducks, they are pretty. Awesome photos! Thanks for hosting WBW!

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  26. nice pics - you obviously got close enough to see the pink highlighter, usually I'm like 'what pink ear' because they are so far away you can't see it!

    don't you hate those pesky non-birders...

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  27. That was also a duck I never seen before! They were really nice!
    I also have, for me, a new sort of duck today!
    Greetings Pia

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  28. Looks like I will have to go and see if I can find some ducks around here, beautiful photos.

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  29. Great pictures! Thank you for sharing this linkup!

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  30. That is one neat looking duck, I haven't seen any even in books on birds. Great photos.

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  31. Okay....I followed directions today:) That duck is a beauty. Wonderful shots!!

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  32. They are beautiful. I don't think I've seen any ducks where the male and female look so much alike.

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  33. Oh, such a pun post. Great looking ducks they really are outstanding in the detail of their markings. I like the marker pen comment, it is so much easier to identify birds by one specific, outstanding feature.

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  34. What a beautiful bird. I love the pink highlighter.

    Cindy

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  35. HI Stewart...It is a pretty duck, all decked put in stripes, but if I had to ID it from to far away I think I'd miss the pink dot : ))!
    Grace

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  36. Gotta love the pink! Thanks for hosting!

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  37. What a wild and wacky duck. I love the pink ear. Great shots. MB

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  38. Ducks with ears! LOve the pink on the side it is quite a bright pink easily noticeable on your photo. PS IT must be really spooky to see that you and your brother are so tuned in to the same things. I take it you are not twins.

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  39. Great photos, accompanied by a most engaging narrative. It's always a delight to visit here.

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  40. WOW - that's one of the prettiest ducks I've ever seen! A True Beauty!!
    Your captures are awesome!!

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  41. Hi Stewart,

    Wow, what excellent photos of the pink-eared duck. I have never seen one before. You are always in the right place at the right time :-)

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  42. Wow Stewart the Pink-eared Duck are so beautiful!!

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  43. Great looking duck I remember seeing them in FNQ many years ago..........

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  44. I learned about so many new birds since paying attention to this hop! A pink eared duck. Who knew?

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  45. Great shots of a pretty duck!

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  46. Beautiful pictures Stewart.
    I have added me to the Wild Bird Wednesday.
    I do not know if I've done well, I come from the Netherlands, and my english is not so good.
    Greetings Irma

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  47. Interesting looking bird, does look very like someone has taken a pink highlighter to them; beautiful eyes and very large beak too.

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  48. Love those pink ears and that exotic looking feathering! Great shots!

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  49. What a lovely captures Stewart...

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  50. What sweet looking beauties. i do not ever remember seeing images of them before, so this was great to see. Love those pink ear marks!

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  51. A strange looking duck there Stewart but good pictures of them. Thanks for hosting again. No WV on my blog.

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  52. Great photographs, Stewart!
    Another new bird for me. Quite an interesting design.

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  53. a bird I have enver seen pics of before. Looks gorgeous with that beak and the pink dot. Interesting post!

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