Duck ID?

[roj54]

Hi, i have seen a duck in my local brook (The Reabrook, Shrewsbury) which i have not seen before. It was slightly smaller than a mallard, had a reddy brown head white breast and a longer bill then a mallard. it dives under the water and re-appears up to 15 ft away. any ideas?

[The Woodman]

A female Gooseander?

[aeshna5]

Originally Posted by The Woodman

A female Gooseander?

The general description sounds good for female Goosander; though it's a fair bit larger than a Mallard.

The other possibility might be a female Red-breasted Merganser which would fit size wise with the original description.

[Picidae]

description sounds good for Goosander which I would have thought is probably more likely on an inland 'brook' than a RB Merganser this time of year. The latter generally winter round the coast.

[roj54]

thanks all, i photographed it on my mobile today and a guy at work who's into wildfowl reckoned it was a goosander too so top marks to you all
there was also a buzzard hanging round there today too so interesting times for an amateur like myself.