Scaup Greater Vs. Lesser

Here we go again.  In January I wrote a blog about greatest scaup.  The past few days I have been photographing in Westport, Massachusetts of ducks on the Westport River.  There have been scaup present, and I have believed that they were all greater scaups.  As I have been reviewing my photographs on the computer, I found a pair of scaups swimming with their necks extended and the male scaup seems to have a bump on it head.  I also have a group of scaups swimming with the head held close to the body.  These up supposed to be some of the differential points and telling a greater from lesser scaup.  As I view my bird field guides, I still am not sure which is which.  I'll leave that to you to look at the pictures.

Possible Lesser Scaup

Greater Scaup

I am also including a reference from the Maine birding list.  These problems do make birding fun.  It gives your mind a workout.

"For others who may be interested, this is an instructive set of photos for testing your scaup ID skills. The photo that Rob linked (see bottom copy from his message) shows 7 scaup, but one is hidden. All the identifiable birds are Greater in that image. The next photo, however, shows all the birds strung out for easy ID. To see the details in this photo one needs to look at the “original” linked here:
http://flashart.smugmug.com/Birding/i-QJHF6BC/0/O/LesserScaup022115.jpg

Starting at the left, there’s an immature Greater, male Lesser (probably an adult), immature female Greater, adult female Greater, and then 3 adult male Greaters.

Head color is tricky and not so reliable. Under good conditions male Greater shows a dark green tinge and male Lesser a purplish sheen. I don’t think that is helpful or definitive here. The traditional head shape difference highlighted in most field guides can be tricky too. That is that Lesser shows a notch on the occiput (top rear of head/crown) and Greater is rounded. The problem is that foraging scaup compress their heads and all can look round headed. In a relaxed pose, like that shown by Rob’s birds swimming along, the classic head shape usually shows. But to get around the the notch/no notch problem, look at the crown on the Greater Scaup and see how the high point is above the eye or slightly forward of it. The head then slopes to the rear and is rounded. Also note that there isn’t much head above the eye on the Greaters. Now look at the Lesser, second from left--one can see how the forehead seems to be the lowest point of the crown and the rear the highest. That’s typical of Lesser Scaup. Also note that there is more “head” above the eye to the top of the crown on the Lesser (the eye is more central in the head but still positioned about the same point behind the top rear of the bill). Other supportive characters shown by the Lesser Scaup are its size and flank color. The male Lesser appears about 10% smaller than its flock-mates and shows duller grayish-tinged flank than the adult male Greaters. That fits for Lesser.

On the females, the immature shows a pale patch over the ear coverts. That is a good feature of Greater Scaup (esp. immature females). The adult female (bright gold eye) has her bill turned toward the camera, and one can see how broad her bill is. The wide head, wide jowls, and broad bill are really good features to look for on Greater Scaup. This is best determined by birds swimming toward you.

Louis Bevier
Fairfield"

How to Recognize the Different Species of Scaup

Lesser Scaup

Greatest Scaup

The other day, the most common species that we observed were scaup.  Now there are two species of scaup: Greatest Scaup and Lesser Scaup.  Today's blog, hopefully will help you would field marks to tell a difference when you are out in the field.  Normally, location helps to identify which scaup, it is.  Greatest Scaup, are usually found in more northern locations, on saltwater and are coastal.  Lesser Scaup can be found more southern, in land and on freshwater.  However, in the winter.  This may not hold true, especially if lakes, ponds and rivers are frozen.  Presently, a great location to observe the scaup and other species of ducks, loons and coots is at Blackstone Park, on River Road overlooking the Seekonk River in Providence, Rhode Island.

Lesser Scaup

Greatest Scaup

Greatest Scaup Female

Greatest Scaup Female

Lesser Scaup

 Whenever you see a large flock of scaup, you need to look closely to see if you are lucky enough to have a Tufted Duck mixed in with the flock.The tufted duck is similar in appearance except for the small tuft of feathers coming off of its head.

Tufted Duck with Scaup

Here is a quick reference guide:

Characteristic	Greater Scaup	Lesser Scaup
Size	18-20"	16-18"
Bill	Broad, Prominent Black Nail	Narrower, More Delicate Nail
Head Shape	Rounded, Highest Point Near Forehead	Oval, Highest Point Near Back, Notch at Rear
Iridescence	Green	Green or Purple
Plumage	Narrow Back Barring, Plain White Flanks	Heavier Barring, Barring Extends onto Flanks
Wing Pattern	White Extends Across Secondary and Primary Feathers	White Only on Secondary Feathers

Lake Umbagog, New Hampshire

I spent Thursday to Sunday, in the Great North Woods of New Hampshire, mainly to photograph Moose, but also photographed many other wildlife and scenes.
The group I was with spent Saturday afternoon until sunset cruising Umbagog New Hampshire State Park and National Wildlife Refuge on a pontoon boat.

Yearling Moose

 
Information about Umbagog Lake from Wikipedia
"Umbagog Lake is a wilderness lake located in Coös County, New Hampshire and Oxford County, Maine. It is one of the most pristine lakes in the state of New Hampshire. It lies in the towns of Errol, New Hampshire, and Upton, Maine, as well as the townships of Cambridge, New Hampshire and Magalloway Plantation, Maine.  Thernames Umbagogis properly pronounced with the stress on the second syllable (um-BAY-gog) and is said toecomenfromn theAbenaki word for "shallow water".
The lake is part of  theUmbagog National Wildlife Refuge and a New Hampshire state park. Along its southernmost shore, there is a publicycampgroundr anda public boat launch ramp which may be accessed from New Hampshire Route 26. There are 26 wilderness campsites, accessible only by boat, which are located around the lakek. An interestingfeature along its northwest shore is an expansive natural floating island composed of generations of decomposing marshland vegetation.
The lake runs almost 11 miles (18 km) north to south. Its surface area is 7,850 acres (31.8 km2) making it the largest lake along the Maine/New Hampshire border. Its average depth is less than 15 feet (4.6 m), and its maximum depth is 48 feet (15 m).A deep section at the north end (aptly named "Deep Hole") may exceed 75 feet (23 m]tThet Lak’s area and depth wereemarkedly increased with the construction of a dam at Errol in the 19th century.
UmbagogLake  i fed by the Magalloway River, the Rapid River, and the Dead Cambridge Rivers. It isthe source of the A The name Umbagog is properly pronounced with the stress on the second syllable (um-BAY-gog) and is said to come from the Abenaki word for "shallow water".
The lake is part of the Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge and a New Hampshire state park. Along its southernmost shore, there is a public campground and a public boat launch ramp which may be accessed from New Hampshire Route 26. There are 26 wilderness campsites, accessible only by boat, which are located around the lake. An interesting feature along its northwest shore is an expansive natural floating island composed of generations of decomposing marshland vegetation.
The lake runs almost 11 miles (18 km) north to south. Its surface area is 7,850 acres (31.8 km2) making it the largest lake along the Maine/New Hampshire border. Its average depth is less than 15 feet (4.6 m), and its maximum depth is 48 feet (15 m).A deep section at the north end (aptly named "Deep Hole") may exceed 75 feet (23 m] The Lake’s area and depth were markedly increased with the construction of a dam at Errol in the 19th century.
Umbagog Lake is fed by the Magalloway River, the Rapid River, and the Dead Cambridge River. It is the source of the Androscoggin River."
We left Errol New Hampshire and cruised down the Androscoggin River across Umbagog Lake then down the the Magalloway River and back. The boat was comfortable and everybody had enough room.
Some of our sightings included bald Eagles, Common Loons, Lesser Scaup and Moose.  The boat operator is a licensed guide and knows the Lake.  He cruises the the River slowly, pointing out sites and maneuvering the boat, so everybody has a chance to get their photos.
My equipment consisted of my Nikon D 800 with a Sigma 300 F/2.8 lens and a 1.4 converter and I utilized a monopod (Monistat of Switzerland), which has a large rubber articulating Fort, which helped to dampen vibrations.  Because we were on a boat and I wanted to keep my shutter speed to at least 1/1/250 of a second, I utilize shutter priority mode and set my speed and allowed the camera to adjust the f-stop.  It was a bright sunny day, most of the time and I had my ISO set at 200, but also had auto ISO selected in the camera.

Female Lesser Scaup leaping out of the water with in water behind

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle in flight

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle Nest with a pair of chicks

Common Loon in water with green reflection

Common Loon with wing flap after preening

Common Loon with wing flap after preening

Common Loon

Late Afternoon on the Androscoggin River

Victoria British Columbia Day One

Monday, March 6, started the day meeting Glenn Bartley in the lobby of the motel where the four participants introduced themselves to each other. Then off to do photography. We went to the Lagoon to photograph mainly the ducks both swimming and in flight. Glenn taught us the best technique for flight photography. He went up and down the shore 200 plus yards to get the ducks into one area by feeding them, then went in the opposite direction and put out feed to get them to fly past us. Many good pictures were obtained and yes a lot of losers.

Common Goldeneye

Mallard

Northern Pintail

Bufflehead

Before we left a pair of mallard got into a long fight.  If you look at the picture the front mallard has blood in its eye.

In the afternoon we went to “the Golden Pond: where the reflection of the trees on the water turned the color of the water yellow. We photographed many different species of ducks, but alas the wood ducks stayed hidden.

Lesser Scaup

American Wigeon

We finished the day on Cove Point where we photographed Black turnstones, dunlins and a pair of Harlequin Ducks.

Harlequin Duck

A fine finish for a great day