Last weekend I was perched, somewhat uncomfortably, on the rocky banks of Crater Lake in Rawson, Victoria. The sun had just risen, and fourteen bird species made themselves known; all were natives apart from a Common Blackbird and the hideously beautiful Muscovy Ducks.
Muscovy Duck (Cairina moschata)
1/1250, f/8.0, ISO 1600
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Muscovy Ducks are native to South America, Central America, and Mexico but have established feral populations in Australia, New Zealand, North America and Europe. I have seen them frequenting ponds in several regional towns but they aren’t listed in my field guides, not even the brilliant new Australian Bird Guide; maybe they are considered domestic escapees rather than feral.
The silky smooth water looked amazing in the early morning light. I feel as though the duck, above, is watching me with its real and its reflected eye. Some images of waterbirds show amazing reflections which I find myself examining closely as so many have been cleverly created in Photoshop; I often play a kind of spot-the-difference to check that the reflection is not a direct, inverted copy of the bird with some kind of wavy Photoshop overlay. The most obvious differences in this reflection include the angle of the head, and that the underside of the duck’s neck and bill is shown in the reflection.
Muscovy Duck (Cairina moschata)
1/1250, f/8.0, ISO 1600
Their bulbous, featherless faces are unmistakable – I’m trying to think of something flattering to say about these birds and the effort is making me chuckle. They looked particularly ungainly as they waddled among the smaller wood ducks and the graceful White-faced Heron.
I have spent quite a bit of time reading about Muscovy Ducks, and although some people speak of them being aggressive many others speak tenderly about how affectionate they are. They seemed calm and gentle as they paddled close to check whether I had a stash of duck food hidden in my pockets – I didn’t, just my phone, keys, spare memory cards, batteries, fingerless gloves, a packet of mints and my trusty Swiss Army penknife.
Happy birding
Kim
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