Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis), Tres Rios Wetlands, Maricopa County

This Ruddy Duck was found and photographed by Troy Corman on 04 May 2017

Apparent melanistic Ruddy Duck; this plumage is rarely documented with at least one prior report with all dark upperparts. 

Size and shape of the head and bill as well as the body and face pattern rule out the superficially Bufflehead and Masked Duck. Several species of Oxyura show all dark heads and this may be an ancestral trait.

04 May 2017, photo by Troy Corman

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