[mou] Peltier - scaup, bufflehead, yellow-rumped

[mwhalen]

This evening we took a jaunt to Lake Peltier in Centerville/Lino Lakes
to identify a flock of ducks.  They were at the SW corner of the lake,
closest to Centerville Lake. We watched them from the fishing pier.  We
found, all in one group:

Five Bufflehead - two mature males, one young male, and two females.
Nine Scaup (new to me)- six males and three females.  Most of them
looked to be LESSER.  One female had a white ear patch, but it sounds
like lesser can have those, too (help)?  One female appeared to not have
the white face mask at all from the spotting scope and the pictures, but
otherwise was definitely a scaup - females have the beautiful striping
appearance.

I first noticed them at 5:30pm and we went back around 7pm.  Not too
much boating pressure this evening.  I didn't see them when we left
around 8pm.

They were quite a distance away to make a great id, but safe to say
lesser from the pictures - and their range.  Two had a more round head
shape, but most had the lesser head shape for sure.  They stayed far
from shore and kept swimming the entire time.

And...
Two Yellow-rumped Warblers on a branch over the water.

Chirps!
Mo Whalen
Ham Lake, Anoka County, MN