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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNovember 18, 2004 - A sea duck sampler (2) The Suffolk Times • November 18, 2004 sea uc sam er There are ����� fewer and � � �__ _ �,�. fewer of these ��:�.y rugged sea � �� ' �"�' ducks around. �� � ,..� . ._ ���� ` Tlmes/Review photo by Paul Stoutenburgh The bufflehead duck is our smallest sea duck. The male is quite striking in its black-ancl-white attire, while the female is very plain, which makes her less conspicuous when taking care of her young.Look for small flocks of these end- lessly diving ducks in our creeks and bays. FrzoM Or.n�_rv�r�r�> S��uth�il�1 I�� I�hcv'II s����n�l th�ir winter diving Cutchogue to Jaincsport to 1Ziver- ancl lcccling alunb the bottom of our head,our bays have been pretty well bays,where they'll feast on worins,an cleared of boats and their moorings. odd killie that thought it was safely water al) winter lon Sleet an snow We saw this the last time we were in hidden and,in general,cruslaceans mean little to them,far it's often cold New Suffolk and also in Orient,where and mollusks of all sorts.They'll stay er above tlie water than in it,so they sailboats had tugged at their moorings around during the winter until ice spend most of their time below and, in the open bay all summer and now takes over and they are forced to go like the cows in m asture,are end- have been hauled out for winter's to the open water of the Sound or sleep,some wrapped in white plastic, occan to find new feeding grounds. lessly searching for something to eat. others left to What we diddt find at first were the Around April [hese smallest of weather winter's little buffleheads,often called"butter- ducks start to move to their breeding F�C.V$ wrath. balls"by gunners.They are usually in grounds in Saskatchewan,Manitoba There were still our bays or,more likely,creeks by and southern Alberta in Canada �N a few boats left now,but we had to wait another week �'�'here they'll look for a woodpecker NATURE in the bay when before we found them in a creek in hole from the previous year.Usually by Paul �'�'e took our little Southold.The male is a handsome lit- it's a flicker's nest they are looking Stoutenburgh 13-foot Whaler tle fellow in his black-and-white attire. for,as the hole has to be big enough out to check on The female is easily recognized in her for this little duck to get into.Once the sea ducks drab,dark colors appropriate for her the nest is found,they'll take over the that come down from their nesting role as a camouflaged mother. site and defend it furiously. area in the far North this time of year. Buft7eheads are usually found in T�e eggs are laid on the bare bot- They'll spend the winter feeding alon groups,diving and popping up,look- tom of the hollow tree nest.As we the Eastern seaboard in our bays and ing around,diving,popping up and know more about these and other ducks,we are findin Sound.Sure enough,we found scoters looking around.They seem to be g some interesting and oldsquaw sprinkled throughout enjoying life. things happening.Other buffleheads the bay.Not many,but enough to let They,like the scoters and old- us know they had made their move, squaws,don't care about the cold. just as the seasons do. They frolic and dive in the icy cold are laying t e�r thousands of scot- eggs in the chosen scotcrs.01'the three species,t e most ers feeding there nest.This is called abundant in our waters is the white- in the Sound.But nest sharing and is winged scoter.Up close or through that was 40 or 50 quite common your binoculars you can see its large years ago.Occa- among ducks.The orange-and-red-and-white bill—quit sionally you can problem is that striking against its black body.The still see great sometimes the white-winged scoter is our largest sea rafts of these rogue female�ays duck and can weigh over three divers out at so many eggs they pounds. Montauk,for that can't all be prop- The next most common is the surf is where the blue erly incubated. scoter.Here again is a large black- mussel clings to Can you imagine colored duck.Its characteristic mark- the rocks and this little duck ings are a white patch on top of its becomes food for incubating 15 to head and a white patch these winter 20 eggs or more? on the back of its neck. migrants. We find this These two white areas Duck hunters problem of can be picked up on the lump these three "dump nests" males quite easily with scoters together (nests with eggs your binoculars. It,like and call them from more than the other scoter,feasts on coots.Usually one hen) happcn- crustaceans and mollusks they are shot at ing with wood of all kinds and a wide early in the morn ducks also. variety of goodies that ing as they pass Actually,we're tolc wc s�ou c no come before it in its endless search over sandy points of land such as you longer put a wood duck box out in for food. find in Orient,Southold,Cutchogue open water because other hens easily The third member of this diving fam and Jamesport.The hunters stand as find it and load it up so much with ily of sea ducks is the black scoter.This far out on the spit of land as they can eggs that there is little or no return is the only completely black-colored . and,as the ducks fly by,try their luck from incubation. duck we have.It,too,has a colorful yel —and there's a lot of that needed. The tree hole nests can be from 10 �ow-orange bill,and is less likely to be Also,I can remember these same to 30 feet or more up in a tree.There in our bays and Sound.The favorite hunters getting a group of hardy the female incubates and hatches her food of all scoters is the blue mussel, young souls together,taking their young.The young respond to the and one of the best spots to find them boats by trailer or pickup to the mother's call,and,with slight hesita- is around rocky areas such as at Orient Sound,where they would haul them tion,they jump out of the nest and fall Point or Montauk Point.There you are out and take them to the water's to the graund,only to bounce up and almost guaranteed to find these rugged ed e.Once out in the water they'd run to where the mother is collecting winter ducks feeding. anchor their boats a gun- the brood. Now for some amazing facts about shot apart and wait for the All the time that the nesting,incu- the feeding habits of these sea ducks. flight to begin.They would bating and rearing of young go on,the We know they feed on a wide variety do this at dawn when the males take off,leaving all those jobs to of hard-shelled crustaceans and mol- ducks were moving to the female.IYs then that the males lusks and that they swallow them their feeding grounds.It's form groups while they molt,meaning whole.For example,they will root out called"pass shooting," thcy lose their old feathers and gradu- a small hard-shelled clam and swallow something that is rarely �i I I row new ones.There's actuall a it whole.Anyone who has opened a done today.The reason is period when they become flightless clam knows how tough and hard the there are fewer and fewer hccause their wing feathers have been shzll of the clam is and yet these of these rugged sea ducks around. shed.This is when they are most vul- rugged ducks thrive on them letting �e other duck we saw out in the nerable to predation.The female goes their gizzard grind up the clam or bay was the oldsquaw,my favorite of through the same molt but more grad- mussel or crab,utilizing the nutrients all winter ducks.I can never get ually,through the summer,as she and passing the unwanted shell parti- enough of seeing this duck.It's one of works with her young. cles out onto the sea floor.Pretty re- our fastest fliers.The males are main- So the next time you see one of markable. ly black and white in color and have these little groups of buftleheads in Other paddling ducks,such as mal- long tail feathers.They,too,spend your creek,think of them hatching ou lards,pintails,wood ducks and others, most of their lives below the water, high in a tree cavity and jumping out, all have powerful gizzards and they, looking for crabs,clams and mussels bouncing on the forest floor and scur- too,swallow their chosen food of —again,almost anything that the giz- rying off to learn the roots of survival. acorns or even hickory nuts,whole. zard can handle.They have a strange Then each year they return to our Now there's a tough nut to crack.The and wonderful yodel.Listen for them local waters for us to enjoy. gizzards will grind these nuts up and on a quiet day. Now that we know a little more utilize the nutrients,passing off the And so we've seen some of the about the bufflehead,leYs go to the ground-up shells. ducks in our bay.Get familiar with Years ago we had a lot more of them and you'll make life a lot more these winter sea ducks than we do interesting,particularly if you have today.I can remember looking off the your binoculars with you and you can bluffs at Mattit nd seeing literall start to idei�tify a white-winged scoter or an olc,sc uaw.