Whiting WMA 2/14: Persistence Pays

Finally. This morning I walked to the lake, as I have a few times a week since August, and saw a duck that was not a Mallard. My first reaction, naked eye was that it was a scaup. "Dang," I said to myself (yeah, "Dang," sure), "Now I've got to figure out if it's lesser or greater." However, once I got the binoculars on it, I saw that it was a Ring-necked Duck. That's a good one, I don't see them that often, especially now that I don't go to Prospect Park.

Then I heard a whooshing sound. It didn't sound like one of the military aircraft that are often overhead. I heard it again and a blur of 2 ducks skidded onto the water. A drake and hen Hooded Merganser, seemingly out of nowhere. The Ring-neck started to swim over to make their acquaintance but they turned their tails to him and moved away. He followed, but never caught up.

I'm hoping they hang around and perhaps attract more birds.  I don't know if there is enough food on the bottom of the lake for them. From what I can see in the shallows, there is a little grass, but the bottom seems mostly sand.

The balance of my walk turned up the expected species--bluebirds again in the open fields and one male was atop a tree, singing his Valentine's Day song.
List:
13 species
Ring-necked Duck  1    Drake on the lake
Hooded Merganser  2    Hen & drake on lake
Mourning Dove  4
Downy Woodpecker  1
Blue Jay  1
American Crow  3
Carolina Chickadee  12
Tufted Titmouse  6
White-breasted Nuthatch  3
Carolina Wren  1    Usual spot off Congasia
Eastern Bluebird  6
Song Sparrow  1
American Goldfinch  5