Twice previously this year I’ve thought I’ve spotted a Scaup where they frequently hang out amongst the local flocks of Tufted ducks, but I haven’t been able to positively identify those possibilities because the birds were either females or immature birds and so looked very similar to female Tufties, or they were too distant, and/or they had their heads tucked away, snoozing.

So, I was delighted when one of our local birders, who is much more expert than I am and had the visual assistance of a telescope, spotted this Scaup in Cardiff Bay last Friday evening. And, very fortunately, the bird paddled over to join one of the Tufty flocks overnight and was still there the next day for the rest of us birders to see and enjoy.

Though it spent a lot of its time asleep, you could still see the large white face shield that is typical of female and immature Scaup. And, though I would normally curse the unthinking kayakers who paddle far too closely to flocks of birds in the Bay, the passing of two kayaks did serve to awaken all the ducks and bring them a little closer to the water’s edge, giving much better views of this lovely duck.