From south-bay-birds-bounces+south-bay-birds-archive=[[email protected]] Fri Oct 17 09:56:50 2003 Received: from www.plaidworks.com (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by plaidworks.com (8.12.9/8.12.9) with ESMTP id h9HGroFx001415 for <[[email protected]]>; Fri, 17 Oct 2003 09:53:50 -0700 (PDT) Received: from concord.eddata.com (concord.eddata.com [216.2.25.194]) by plaidworks.com (8.12.9/8.12.9) with ESMTP id h9HGqhJl001364 for <[[email protected]]>; Fri, 17 Oct 2003 09:52:47 -0700 (PDT) Received: by CONCORD with Internet Mail Service (5.5.2657.72) id ; Fri, 17 Oct 2003 09:53:18 -0700 Message-ID: <731A6F12A87AD2118E8B006097098F9A5AC604@CONCORD> From: Mark Paxton <[[email protected]]> To: "SBB (E-mail)" <[[email protected]]> Date: Fri, 17 Oct 2003 09:53:17 -0700 MIME-Version: 1.0 X-Mailer: Internet Mail Service (5.5.2657.72) Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Subject: [SBB] Black-bellied Whistling Duck report X-BeenThere: [[email protected]] X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.2+ Precedence: list List-Id: South Bay Birding List-Unsubscribe: , List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Sender: south-bay-birds-bounces+south-bay-birds-archive=[[email protected]] Errors-To: south-bay-birds-bounces+south-bay-birds-archive=[[email protected]] Hello, I joined Caroline Nabeta yesterday afternoon and we easily relocated the Black-bellied Whistling Duck she reported earlier yesterday. The duck is on the water hazard near the tees to the 18th hole of the Gabilan Course at Ridgemark Golf and Country Club, just south of Hollister in San Benito County. We had extended good looks at the bird. It is the ease with which the bird was viewed that leads me to strongly believe the bird is an escapee rather than a wild vagrant. The duck was in the company of lots of domestic mallards, appeared calm and settled, and as we approached, looked directly at us with no sign of agitation and no attempt to retreat. Caroline indicated that when a golfer who feeds the domestic waterfowl around the course approached this flock, the Whistling Duck joined the mallards at the banquet table. In spite of its questionable provenance, the bird is beautiful. One feature not depicted in most field guides that was apparant to both of us is that the crown patch appeared to be raised, mohawk-like. Further, it was a shade darker than the rufous coloring across the bird's back. Ridgemark is semi-public. Should anyone be interested, it is possible to view the bird with a bit of a walk. Entering Ridgemark from Highway 25, turn into the parking lot on the right just before reaching the guard house. You will not need to pass through the guard gate if you're in the right place. Park near the rear of the lot. The fairway that wraps around the parking lot, and the small office building at its edge, is the 18th. Being mindful of walkers, follow the cart path to the 18th tee, and check the pond that wraps around the back side of the tee. Mark Paxton _______________________________________________ Do not post admin requests to the list. They will be ignored. south-bay-birds mailing list ([[email protected]]) Help/Unsubscribe/Update your Subscription: http://www.plaidworks.com/mailman/options/south-bay-birds/south-bay-birds-archive%40plaidworks.com This email sent to [[email protected]]