Even though I have spent a lot of my life near water, I had never seen a wood duck until I moved to this house in the woods. Now I frequently see them from my windows.
Because they are easily startled and because the foliage along the creek and river banks is dense, I am seldom able to get close enough to get good photos.
My kids telephoto lens proved helpful here.
Wood ducks (Aix sponsa) are found only in North America, primarily in eastern North America, but can also be found in some areas of western North America.
Wood ducks prefer wooded swamps and river bottomlands. Natural cavities in trees serve as nests sites.
Because they spend so much time in trees, wood ducks have claws on their webbed feet that help them perch and climb on tree branches, the American Bird Conservancy reports. Their wing structure also allows them to fly in tight spaces, which helps them navigate through the trees of the forest they inhabit.
source
Male wood duck swimming near a pair of mallards.
Duck hunting season opens in October. I will be wishing all these guys good luck.
