The charmer...
I had a great time watching this drake Ruddy Duck go through his courtship ritual, which involved holding his head high, then vigorously slapping his beak against his chest several times, then leaning forward with his beak open just a bit just like he was blowing kisses to the hens. I know these ducks for the way they hold their tail feathers, always at such an upright angle!
I just love his breeding plumage as it's something I'd expect Walt Disney to come up with... "Yes, and give him a blue beak, a white cheek, and red and black over the rest of his body." What a spectacular duck!! And I had doubts that I'd ever see one of these guys in breeding plumage! Yes, dreams do come true!
Taken 8 June 2017 near Vanscoy, Saskatchewan, Canada.
The charmer...
I had a great time watching this drake Ruddy Duck go through his courtship ritual, which involved holding his head high, then vigorously slapping his beak against his chest several times, then leaning forward with his beak open just a bit just like he was blowing kisses to the hens. I know these ducks for the way they hold their tail feathers, always at such an upright angle!
I just love his breeding plumage as it's something I'd expect Walt Disney to come up with... "Yes, and give him a blue beak, a white cheek, and red and black over the rest of his body." What a spectacular duck!! And I had doubts that I'd ever see one of these guys in breeding plumage! Yes, dreams do come true!
Taken 8 June 2017 near Vanscoy, Saskatchewan, Canada.