I made the run up to North Point Park in Sheboygan this morning with hopes to see the male Barrow’s Goldeneye. I was not disappointed. The Barrow’s Goldeneye rode the large waves coming in like the other ducks present. It dove often for food and sometimes it was hard to relocate with the large waves. This is not a life bird as I photographed one at the exact location back on January 7, 2011. As I have searched high and low through rafts of Common Goldeneye on the Milwaukee lakefront year after year, to see one again is a special treat. From Sheboygan I stopped at Port Washington for a couple of minutes and got a distant shot of 4- Red-throated Loons just east of the harbor entrance feeding on occasion. Thanks to Dan B for finding this uncommon bird for the area and for getting the word out for others to see it. It was about 20 degrees with full sun when I arrived at 9:00 am with steady winds off the lake. It was a bitter cold viewing period. Images were taken on March 15, 2017.
Barrow’s Goldeneye
Binomial name: Bucephala islanddica
Category: Duck, Geese, and Swans
Size: 18” long, 28” wing span
Weight: 2.1 lb.
Range: The normal winter range for this duck species is the east and west coasts of the US and Canada. The breeding range in general, is inland along with west coast of Canada well into Alaska south into Wyoming.