Pochard, red-listed

02 Saturday Mar 2024

Tags

Aythya ferina, birding, birdwatching, British birds, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, Pochard, red-listed birds

Even in the short time I’ve lived in Wales, the numbers of Pochard (Aythya ferina) I see each winter have declined, and my observations are confirmed by the facts: Pochards are now red-listed in the UK. According to information in the British Trust for Ornithology’s publication Into the Red, both the breeding and non-breeding populations of these birds have declined as have the ranges both breeding and non-breeding birds occupy, and they are classified as globally threatened by the IUCN (the International Union for Conservation of Nature).

240302 pochard male

So, it’s always a great pleasure when I do see Pochards on the local lakes and waterways. This male, with his fiery russet head, and female, with the mottled brown plumage that is so typical of female ducks, have been present at Cosmeston Lakes Country Lake this past week.

240302 pochard female

317/365 H is for hybrid

13 Wednesday Nov 2019

Posted by sconzani in birds, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

birding, birdwatching, British birds, hybrid duck, Pochard, Scaup, Tufted duck

When I was looking for the Snow bunting at The Knap in Barry yesterday, I also spotted this hybrid duck. It’s probably the same hybrid that’s been seen in The Knap lake and at Cosmeston, both this winter and last, always in the company of Tufted ducks. But what is it?

191113 hybrid

Well, the fact that it associates with the Tufted ducks may mean one of its parents was a Tufty. Here’s a photo of a male Tufted duck (Aythya fuligula). As you can see, the hybrid doesn’t have the dark back or the head tuft of this bird.

191113 tufted duck

The lighter back feathers of the hybrid resemble those of a Scaup (Aythya marila) and the occasional Scaup has been seen associating with the local Tufties, so maybe…. Here’s a male Scaup for comparison.

191113 scaup

There’s still the issue of the hybrid’s head shape and colour, which to my inexperienced eyes look rather like a male Pochard (Aythya ferina), a duck that also has light grey back plumage (photo below). So, maybe we have a Tufted duck – Pochard hybrid?

191113 pochard

The reality is that no one can be 100% sure of the hybrid’s parentage without a DNA test, but it’s always interesting to see birds like this and speculate. What do you think?

Drake domination

20 Tuesday Feb 2018

Posted by sconzani in birds, nature

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Aythya ferina, birding, birdwatching, British birds, Pochard

180220 Pochard (1)

So it’s not just in the world of human beings that males dominate females. No, I’m not climbing on my soapbox – I’m referring to the recently published results of surveys of European and North African populations of Pochard (Aythya ferina), which have indicated that, over a 16-year period, the proportion of males to females has increased significantly in favour of the males. You can read more about the research here.

180220 Pochard (3)

180220 Pochard (5)

January at Cosmeston

01 Thursday Feb 2018

Posted by sconzani in birds, nature, parks

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

birding, birdwatching, blackbird, British birds, chaffinch, coal tit, Common Gull, Cosmeston, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, Gadwall, Great tit, long-tailed tit, Marsh tit, nuthatch, Pochard, Reed bunting, robin, shoveler

180201 1 Long-tailed tits & Blackbird

7 January Gale-force winds were blasting across the exposed areas around the lake today but, with blue skies overhead, the park was full of people out walking, despite the chill. The wee birds were hungry and I was greeted with much happy peeping wherever I scattered seed and virtually mobbed at the dragon tree in Cogan Woods, by Great, Blue, Coal and Long-tailed tits, Dunnocks and Robins, Chaffinches and Nuthatches, Blackbirds and a Reed bunting were all happy to accept any tasty little morsels.

On the lakes the birds were mostly hunkered down, as it was too windy for flying. Teal, Gadwall, Pochard and a Shoveler were some of the highlights.

17 January After much scrutinising of the huge numbers of gulls that you nearly always find at Cosmeston, I spotted my first Common gull of the year.

180201 10 Common gull

23 January A regular Cosmeston-going birding friend had reported an adult Yellow-legged gull the previous day and I fancied a good walk so I headed to Cossie for a look. These was no sign of the gull but I was delighted to see one of the Marsh tits that frequents a particular spot in Cogan Woods, and it became bird number 67 on this year’s list, before I strode quickly home in pouring rain (yep, drenched!).

180201 11 Marsh tit

I’ve been to Cosmeston a couple more times this month but those outings were more about braving the rain to satisfy my cravings for fresh air and exercise than nature-watching, particularly as it’s been too wet to have camera and binoculars out and about. Let’s hope February is a bit drier.

Not one but three

24 Sunday Jan 2016

Posted by sconzani in birds, nature, nature photography

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

bird identification, birding, birds, birdwatching, British birds, Pochard

I saw my first male Pochard on Roath Park Lake three weeks ago and was charmed by his handsome colours and markings. During my frequent subsequent walks around the lake, I keep seeing him and always stop to say hello and, as he comes very close to the lake edge, to take more photos. As I only ever see him on his own each time, albeit in different places around the lake, it never occurred to me that there was more than one bird … until today, when I looked more closely at my photos. Can you see the differences?

160124 pochard males (1)

Each of these birds – it seems there have been at least three! – has different markings on its bill, and this patterning of dark and light pigmentation on the bill is the main way to distinguish individual ducks of many species when conducting field surveys and research. So, if ducks used ID cards, they wouldn’t need finger prints or retina scans, they’d need bill prints!

Perhaps he’s thinking, ‘Well, yes, did you really think we all looked the same?’.

Pochard perfection

03 Sunday Jan 2016

Posted by sconzani in birds, nature, nature photography

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birding, birds, birdwatching, British birds, Pochard

As soon as I spotted his bright chestnut-coloured head I knew this was a Pochard (Aythya ferina). Though this was a first-ever sighting for me today, on Roath Park lake in Cardiff, his colouring was unmistakable, and what a handsome chap he was. The origin of his name is, apparently, something of a mystery – and its pronunciation arguable! – though he’s attracted a very long list of common names, including doucker, dun bird, dun poker, poker, red-headed wigeon, smee duck, well plum, whinyard, and, my favourite, red-eyed poker.

160103 pochard (2)

The Pochard has only been a British resident for about 200 years and, even now, the majority of birds come here primarily during the winter months, to escape the bitterly cold conditions in Russia and eastern Europe.

160103 pochard (3)

My new friend was amusing me with diving demonstrations – he dives for food, which could include anything from submerged plant life and seeds to small fish, snails and insects. I didn’t spot any females around today but I’m a regular visitor to the lake so will certainly be looking out for Mrs Pochard and hoping to see this beautiful creature again.

160103 pochard (1)