Connecticut Audubon Bird Finder for February 7: Hooded Merganser

Hooded Merganser
Lophodytes cucullatus)

Where to find it: Hooded Mergansers are beautiful, small diving ducks that frequent open brackish creeks and marshes in the late fall and winter.  Currently, one of the most reliable sites for viewing numbers of “Hoodies” is Lordship Boulevard, in Stratford, especially near the Sikorsky Airport, where the tidal creek flows into the Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge. Hooded Mergansers can also be found on the Connecticut River in Essex, the mouth of Mill River on Harbor Road in Fairfield, and along the Hammonassett River in Madison.

How to find it: Look for small diving ducks in the outflow/inflow of the creek. Sometimes they are sitting on an ice floe, at other times resting on the water or actively diving for small fish, which they catch with their narrow, serrated bill.

What it looks like: This is an unmistakable small duck. The male is black above with a white breast, rusty flanks and a unique white crest. The female is greyish brown with a tawny crest.

What else to look for if the bird is not there: These open water areas attract many other waterfowl species, so don’t be surprised to find American Black Duck, Mallard, and sometimes Pied-billed Grebe sharing the water with the Hoodies.

Conservation status: The IUCN currently lists these ducks as Least Concern> In fact the number of Hooded Mergansers isincreasing in Connecticut. They nest in tree cavities and boxes placed for Wood Ducks throughout much of the state.

This week’s Connecticut Audubon Bird Finder was contributed by Milan Bull, senior director of science and conservation for Connecticut Audubon Society.

Photo by Dick Daniels

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