[![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmXEDLrriAHuk5z66VfQXuxLnt2wrVncfViwgcfSGVRvRb/_20260513_4.jpg)](https://images.ecency.com/DQmXEDLrriAHuk5z66VfQXuxLnt2wrVncfViwgcfSGVRvRb/_20260513_4.jpg) *This week's theme (ROUND 270) [**SHOW ME A PICTURE OF BIRD. FREE THEME**](https://ecency.com/hive-106444/@nelinoeva/feathered-friends-show-me-a-f732d48274968)* *Hey, @nelinoeva. How's things?* I haven't shared my bird photos in a long time. I haven't seen anything new or interesting about bird life for a long time, so I haven't written a single post on this topic for several months. Last weekend brought me a surprise! It was an ordinary Saturday morning when I was walking my dog towards the river. My Nora loves to run and that's why it scared away a lot of ducks, ordinary mallard ducks. In spring, ducks are very shy and won't let anyone get close to them. Of course, I took a Nikon D5300 with a Tamron 18-400mm lens with me for bird meetings, but during the whole walk I didn't have a good opportunity to take photos of birds. * * * * * * * * * * [![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmVZo4hnzLCknWjZyBpsxXsEaDYQ5dEeGdHU7ENsERsGDp/0_20260513.jpg)](https://images.ecency.com/DQmVZo4hnzLCknWjZyBpsxXsEaDYQ5dEeGdHU7ENsERsGDp/0_20260513.jpg) The water level in the river is already sinking, every day the water is getting smaller by 10-20cm. That's why I went to the river on the summer route. I walked along the shore to the forest and headed back home. I usually take the dog on a leash when I leave the river, but this time I decided to give her the opportunity to run. I passed by a small pond, which is formed by melting snow and disappears in summer, when 2 ducks flew out of the grass. It was my dog that scared them. I thought they would fly away like all the previous ones, but they landed on the other side of the pond. There was something strange and unusual about them. I decided to take a look at them through the camera lens. * * * * * * * * * * [![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmUQhxsnfP7QavVdToCt9XxRWd6bBbEfTByQYPQTvpSrDb/_20260513_2.jpg)](https://images.ecency.com/DQmUQhxsnfP7QavVdToCt9XxRWd6bBbEfTByQYPQTvpSrDb/_20260513_2.jpg) That's right, it is! These were no ordinary mallard ducks. I've never seen anything like this before. The distance to the ducks was great. I took a large number of photos at a focal length of 400mm. The thought came to my mind that the result would not be very good, because in this mode the lens often loses its clarity from flinching. I started shooting at a shorter focal length, hoping for post-processing in Photoshop (Many thanks to @melinda010100). * * * * * * * * * * [![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmSyKKWrgCwbZRjuzrbFe6f9adfSLvPyGPcnXT6uaPuyt6/_20260513_3.jpg)](https://images.ecency.com/DQmSyKKWrgCwbZRjuzrbFe6f9adfSLvPyGPcnXT6uaPuyt6/_20260513_3.jpg) The drake had an unusual color and I even thought it was some kind of mutation. But the neck height was also shorter than that of drakes with green-blue heads. The mother duck was an ordinary gray coloring and I wouldn't even pay attention to her. * * * * * * * * * * [![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmd1TyPFQZkjLZZ4hkjHfhYy3zcXeC5gEcmBxAXGN4zVTD/_20260513_5.jpg)](https://images.ecency.com/DQmd1TyPFQZkjLZZ4hkjHfhYy3zcXeC5gEcmBxAXGN4zVTD/_20260513_5.jpg) Already at home, I analyzed the photos, searched for information from the photos and got the result - this is ***Eurasian Wigeon*** What other information did I learn about this duck? >[A river duck](https://www.ebirds.ru/bird/33.htm) characterized by long wings, a pointed tail, a short neck and a beak. Pronounced sexual dimorphism: the male has a brown-chestnut head, yellowish forehead, wine-red chest, white shoulders, and a shiny green "mirror" on the wings; the female has gray-brown plumage with dark speckles and a gray-black "mirror". Living environment. This river duck breeds in marshlands, peat bogs and on lake islands. It chooses the shores of the seas and other salty reservoirs as a wintering place. The habitat is definitely not suitable for this place. Last year, in the spring, I met a couple of swans on a lake in the valley, but they were there for only one day. Probably, these ducks also stopped only for a short time on this lake. They are lucky that the period of permitted spring hunting is over. * * * * * * * * * * Next time I'll tell you about a woodpecker who lives on the territory of my daughter's country house. I had 6 days to observe him. And it was fun. [![image.png](https://images.ecency.com/DQmTmqSxirfGYoZyzkjjjCoHjvUd4Z2QzBxoHCvoBp53wVc/image.png)](https://ecency.com/created/hive-106444) _{*banner created by @barbara-orenya*}
![imagehive1.png](https://images.ecency.com/DQmYbD5H7vX4jU6TiFbUKDRt1VvurE3tmJNBgpmF4jxEYkW/imagehive1.png) ***Don’t Worry, Be Happy*** _{(C) Bobby McFerrin} _{Text & Photography by @apnigrich} _{With love @apnigrich} _{Good luck and have fun} _@apnigrich ![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmdNkuUGwFFCjDbTagfBfakLRE8shLea64nDEXNMZbnoF7/image.png)

Mother Nature