This unique sighting comes to us from a fellow outdoorsman, and it is just the kind of observation I really like. What we have here is a leucistic Gadwall—a duck lacking in normal pigmentation.
The expected coloration for this Gadwall can be seen on his associates. Browns, grays, black, and white. On the leucistic bird thoses colors are absent or replaced with lighter shades. Even so, normal Gadwall patterns formed by the different colors are still discernible.
Observation Details
County | – | Dallas |
|
City | – | Dallas | |
Date | – | Mar 3, 2013 | |
Time of Day | – | Afternoon | |
Temperature | – | Warm (70-89°F/21-32°C) | |
Weather | – | Clear | |
Habitat | – | Recreation-Park | |
Type of Behavior | – | Congregating | |
Gender | – | Mixed | |
Maturity | – | Adult | |
Observer | – | Ben Sandifer |
Interesting, it has an orange bill.
During a recent day of Duck Hunting I shot a leucistic gadwall. I was hunting on the United States Army Redstone Arsenal in Northern Alabama. I have taken the bird to a local taxidermist for mounting.