Ruddy Duck Grooming – As the Ruddy Duck groomed, it appeared to the casual observer that he was sort of swimming around in circles and not getting much done. While in fact, he was doing a very thorough job of maintaining the water repellent and insulating nature of his feathers.
Lone Ruddy Duck – This Ruddy Duck spent several minutes grooming himself in a pond on Leonabelle Turnbull Birding Center in Port Aransas, Texas. It was fun to watch him splash around and painstakingly oil and then smooth each feather.
Feathers Just Feathers – I was taken by the coloring and detail in the feathers of the male Ruddy Duck. In post-processing, I made the rare decision to crop most of the image out leaving only the side and wing feathers. While the bird is not visible, many people would be able to identify this …