Some help with duck goose ID please

[wildlifepilgrim]

All these were at attenborough Nature reserve this weekend. Some might be released ornamental birds.


Snow Goose?


Ruddy Duck or Smew?


Ruddy Shelduck?


Canalag goose? (Canada+Greylag)

[aeshna5]

1 Domestic Greylag
2 Female Red-crested Pochard
3 Female Ruddy Shelduck
4 Greylag (probably domestic version) x Canada Goose

RC Pochards have an increasing feral population (as well as occasional vagrants) + this bird in your photo is unpinioned as is the Ruddy Shelduck, so have possibly flown into the reserve from elsewhere.

[Ukwildlifeo]

I agree with Aeshnea with the ids.

Funny Ruddy shelducks should have come up, Ive was researching them for the blog post yesterday. All the ones in this country are escapees or their descendants (ie feral). Some have probably come from abroad but these are almost certainly from the NW European Feral population. Apparently they are breeding well in Holland at the moment

[wildlifepilgrim]

Thanks for the IDs folks. Will blog it soon.


Nice blog neil, it is surprising how similar it is to mine!

The fascinated wanderer

[darrenm]

In the Nottingham area there are quite a few Red-crested Pochard on various water bodies in the area and the first place i saw them was at Arnot Hill Park in Arnold and they appeared after the lake was cleaned out and re-landscaped about five or six years ago. I am now wondering if this is the source of these ducks?

Dont get me wrong i like to see them but thought it might cause some confusion in people if they think they may have found a wild migrant bird on their patch.

Nice pics

[aeshna5]

Originally Posted by Ukwildlifeo

I agree with Aeshnea with the ids.

Funny Ruddy shelducks should have come up, Ive was researching them for the blog post yesterday. All the ones in this country are escapees or their descendants (ie feral). Some have probably come from abroad but these are almost certainly from the NW European Feral population. Apparently they are breeding well in Holland at the moment

There has been debate- there was a paper in British Birds some time back- that occasionally groups of genuine vagrants turn up in NW Europe, including UK, though no doubt most birds seen are from captive stock.

There are fossil remains from 5 UK sites as well as some historic invasions of genuine wild birds before the species was regularly kept in collections. The BOU placed the bird in Category B on this evidence (having occurred in a wild state before 1950). No post 1950 records have been accepted because of the confusion with captive/feral birds, but it is likely that some genuine wild birds have ocurred.

[wildlifepilgrim]

Number 2 was a female red crested pochard. I spotted her mate today.

[thebeard]

funny, i was there on sunday too! might have seen you! i got a picture of the very same ruddy shelduck, she's great!

[darrenm]

its a pity that the presence of these feral birds make any sightings and records of any possible vagrant wild birds of the same species a bit worthless but suppose its still a year tick for some but i wouldnt count it personally if i was year listing anymore because it is not a wild bird but it is still great to see.

Looking back at some of the County records for Nottinghamshire held in the main Library in Nottingham Ruddy Shelduck did seem to visit some of the gravel pits in the Trent Valley for a number of years and on a few occasions around the same period of time in the year and wonder if these were truly wild vagrant/migrant birds but suppose now we will never know for certain?

With feral populations also breeding on the Continent suppose it just complicates things even further and the reason that any records of wild birds of this species will not get taken seriously.

[aeshna5]

Originally Posted by darrenm

its a pity that the presence of these feral birds make any sightings and records of any possible vagrant wild birds of the same species a bit worthless but suppose its still a year tick for some but i wouldnt count it personally if i was year listing anymore because it is not a wild bird but it is still great to see.

Looking back at some of the County records for Nottinghamshire held in the main Library in Nottingham Ruddy Shelduck did seem to visit some of the gravel pits in the Trent Valley for a number of years and on a few occasions around the same period of time in the year and wonder if these were truly wild vagrant/migrant birds but suppose now we will never know for certain?

With feral populations also breeding on the Continent suppose it just complicates things even further and the reason that any records of wild birds of this species will not get taken seriously.

There was a paper, I think in the last year or so, there was a paper on vagrancy of Ruddy Shelduck in British Birds.