I am fortunate to be able to step out of the house and immediately be in Rheinaue Park, an extensive urban green space stretching along the Rhine in Bonn. As it is so easy to access from my current home, I visit the park very regularly and thus have a good chance of spotting something less common. In late winter, there is usually a good chance of some unusual ducks on passage, which is a nice distraction at a time when interesting sightings are few and far between.
The largest of the series of lakes in the park typically holds a collection of typical species like Mute Swan, Eurasian Coot, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Great Crested and Little Grebes, and Greylag, Egyptian, and Canada Geese. Other species pass through infrequently, such as Northern Shoveler, Common Pochard, Garganey, and Gadwall.
I was hoping for Greater Scaups, as this seemed like a species that could potentially show up. Sure enough, in February we had a small group of male and female Greater Scaups, accompanied by a large group of Tufted Ducks and Common Pochards. The scaups were a real pleasure to observe, and it was only the second time that I’ve seen a male of this species. The green sheen to their head and intricate barring on the back were beautiful to see through the scope.
Returning from a short look at the scaups, I heard the atmospheric calls of Common Cranes one afternoon, followed by the sighting of several hundred individuals passing overhead over the course of half an hour, in groups of around 50 to 200 birds. Every year, we have cranes pass through in February, but I have never seen as many birds as this time.
While I have been longingly looking forward to spring and more bird activity, I was glad that some species here and there at this time of the year remained unexpected and provided some interesting sightings. Being able to watch the Greater Scaups at length was very rewarding in particular, and it was nice to be able to compare the females side by side with female Tufted Ducks, making the differences between the species very obvious.
My Zone Is Birding 