Nature Miramichi:

Hi All,

Deana and I had the very good fortune to discover a somewhat rare duck at Hay Island this morning, Deana spotting it first. It is a Eurasian bird that spends its winter in Africa and southern Asia. It breeds widely across Eurasia. It shows up in North America on occasion particularly in Eastern Canada. The last report for NB, we are aware of, was a sighting in the Tracadie area in 1990.

We sent word out through NB Listserv and a few text messages and emails and before too long a number of birders gathered. We are sorry we didn’t contact more people directly. There is every chance that it will still be there tomorrow morning. It was there all day today and previous sightings have lasted a few days.

People today stayed well back so as not to bother any of the ducks. Such wanderers can be stressed although this bird did not seem concerned or even aware of us. It is a dabbling duck and seemed to be feeding well. It was with a group of about 8 Green-winged Teals … a cousin species … its name in French translates to “Teal of Summer”. It is easily seen with binoculars.

Map attached.

Peter and Deana