Andy Rabin wrote: > > I saw an unusual looking duck today in Greenbelt Lake, Prince George's >County, MD. It was with a group of mallards and it was shaped like a >mallard. It was all black except for the front of its neck and top of its >breast which were white. The color pattern was very similar to that of a >black scoter. The bill was black and shaped like a mallard's and its legs >were orange. > > Was this just some weird mallard? Or is it possible that it was a black >scoter? > Andy: This is one of the commoner variations of Mallards found in public areas (many birders call them "dock Mallards") where interbreeding with a variety of dometic waterfowl is common. I ought to know, and don't, what parental combinations cause this plumage. Over the past 25 years I have seen several hundred birds like the one you describe, all around parks, golf courses, and docks. Rick Rick Blom rblom@blazie.com Bel Air, Maryland "Did St. Francis preach to the birds? Whatever for? If he really liked birds he would have done better to preach to the cats." Rebecca West