On Thu, Aug 6, 2026 at 3:21 PM Gary Bletsch (via NYSBIRDS-L list) <
<NYSBIRDS-L...> wrote:
> Dear NY Birders,
>
> There was an odd Aythya duck at Dunkirk Harbor recently. That is in
> Chautauqua County, NY. There had been a pair of Redheads there on the 21st
> and 24th of July; each time, a drake Ring-necked Duck was with them, making
> for an odd little out-of-season band of Aythya ducks.
>
> On the 2nd August at 1435, I birded there again. This time, there were
> only two Aythyas. A drake Redhead was in the company of a duck that had me
> puzzled; it did not look like the RNDU that I'd seen on the two previous
> visits. I took photos and put them on my eBird checklist, initially
> attempting to put the odd bird down as a Redhead.
>
> During the photo-uploading process, the Merlin application insisted that
> the odd duck was a Ring-necked Duck. Looking at the photos, I cannot say
> that it was a RNDU; the shape of the head seems wrong. Nor does the bird
> look right for a REDH. Granted, I have never lived anywhere where I have
> been able to see many Aythyas this time of year, so I don't have much
> experience with them in eclipse or juvenile plumages.
>
> The bird does have a suggestion of what RT Peterson described as "a
> vertical white mark before the wing," albeit not very pronounced.
>
> The hotspot is called Dunkirk Harbor; my checklist is number hecklist
> S379383896although I know that sometimes that does not help people trying
> to find a checklist on eBird!
>
> Anyway, I'd love to hear any opinions as to this bird's identity.
>
> Thanks.
>
> Yours truly,
>
> Gary Bletsch
> Jamestown, NY
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