November 25, 1962 - Bufflehead DucksBufflehead Ducks
Exclusive Sunday Review Sketch by Dennis Puleston of Brookhaven.
Focus on Nature
Most of us are pretty - easily
swayed by the weather. If the
sun is out bright and there is a
clear blue sky and the tempera-
ture within reason, we usually
find ourselves in a happy mood.
But let the cold and rainy
weather come with its dark and
dreary weather and we contract
the mood and feel dull a n d
depressed.
Not so, or at'least it seems
not so for many of the birds and
animals in nature's world. -In par-
ticular, I am thinking of t he
Bufflehead, who simply . cannot
be discouraged no matter how
foul the weather or how cold the
wind blows. Just today, w h i l e
driving home in the cold rain,
I stopped, as usual, to check over
the bay with my glasses. Off to
the left, I spotted a small group
of ducks — 10 or 12 I think.
What caught my eye and revealed
their identification were the two
conspicuous 'sharply contrasting
black and white colored, ducks.
These, when focused on, proved -
to be the handsomely striking
buffleheads. The rest were the
immatures and females, dressed
in their inconspicuously dull col -
ors. These two males seemed to
rule over the group with all their
splendor, appearing as if they
had just come from Santa's work-
shop and still glistened with a
fresh coat of paint. In the poor
light I could only see the black
and the white but I knew all too
well from previous occasions that
the over-sized head of the male
w o u l d have that remarkable
glossed -over effect of p u r p l e,
violet and green which is picked
up by the light when viewed at
just the right angle.
This over- sized. head gave the
bird its original name of "buffalo
head" because like the buffalo it
had an oversize head in respect
to its body. Through the years
the name has evolved as buffle-
head while to the local gunner
he is better known as the butter
ball'. This they are, for at this
time of the yzar they are well
fattened for the winter ahead. All
too many gunners know the buf-
flehead's weakness for decoying
and because it cannot r e s i s t
dropping in and making friends it
takes a terrib'.e beating during
the gunning season. Even when
the smoke is cleared and the few
remaining ducks fly off, it is not
uacbmmon to find them return-
ing, shortly after unaware of
their awaiting doom.
I recall as a .youngster, the
many small flocks of butter balls
that made the nearby creeks
their feeding ground. Crouched
down behind a clump of grass
or nearby bush, I would watch
their antics unobserved. One of
the fastest of ducks, they would
come is from the Say, rise sharp -
>y over the point and drop down
again' -a few feet above t he
water — only to land with a
splash and sliding stop. Looking
around, with head erect, they
wou'.d soon be busy diving for the
" mollusks. crustacea, fish
by Paul Stoutenburgh, Cutchogue
etc that make up their diet. Be-
cause of their fishy diet, t h i s
duck is thought -by many to be
quite unpalatable and is often
discarded by the hunter after a
useless kill.. To me this type of
killing is done under the pretense
of, sportsmanship and is one of
our greatest and most unexcusa-
ble frauds.
When they were on the water
feeding, usually one duck would
be left as a sentry and it was
seldom that you would ever find
them all down without this guard.
But in those days of no te'.evision
and friends being miles away it
was sort of a game to wait until
this one moment did occur, and
then, run up and wait breath-
lessly for them to pop up like
a cork in front of you. If all
went well and not an eye flick-
ered, they would go about their
business unaware of my presence.
It was then that I would hear
the loss "talking" among them
and .perhaps see a piece of sea-
weed that one had brought up
to the surface to eat.
Most books suggest that this
bird is usually associated with
the fresh water. His range will
run the -breadth of our Northern
states on up into Canada. We
a'. o n g the coast, who find a
scarcity of fresh water, a r e
lucky enough to find the buffle-
:head enjoying .our bays a n d
creeks. Through the r o.0 g hest
weather you will find these hardy
ducks and when spring t i m e
comes we can be amused at their
antics as that mysterious urge
of courtship takes place before
our eyes.
It was a joy to watch these
strikingly beautiful black a n d
white males strutting amongst
what seemed to be the uninterest-
ed. females. With head erect and
bill turning skyward they always
gave the appearance of "strutting
their stuff." It's here also that
we see the marry scraps among
the males that are so character-
istic with the wild at this time.
They are about the last diving
deck to leave our area and head
adds the plains to their wooded
nestine, grounds, north of t h e
Canadian prairies. We are to 1 d
they seek out hollow trees to nest
in. This habit is very similar to
the wood duck and goiden eye
and is one of the many sights
ion birding I have yet to witness.
Sometimes as high up as 60 feet
they will nest in abandoned wood-
pecker's hole for they require
only a hole three inches in dia-
meter to get iato. There is no
nest building in a conventional
matter except the down f r o m
their breast. When the young
are hatched and the "all clear"
is given, the young, who a r e
especially equipped at this stage,
climb up the cavity and '.eap to
the ground or water below. No
where have I fouled any record
that this fantastic I e a p h a s
proved to be any sort of mor-
tality factor in their lives.
To those who have never seen
this trim little duck, I urge you
to keep a sharp watch of o u r
creeks and bays. Once you come
to recognize him, you like so
many other will find yourself be-
ing captured by his charm — a
charm that will last a lifetime.
FIELD OBSERVATIONS
Miss Irma Reeve reports:
Mattituck — at feeder
Mockingbird
Lawrence Erinest reports:
Shinnecock — Nov 4 -12
Purple Sandpipers
Short -eared Owl
Bonaparte Gull 's
Mecox — Nov 4 - 12
Ruddy Ducks
East Hampton — Nov 4 - 12
Red - tailed Hawk
Judd Bennett reports:
East Marion /Orient — Nov 11 -17
Northern Shrike (2)
Marsh Hawk
Pigeon Hawk
Catbird
Doves (15)
Redwing (3)
Flocks of Goldfinch (50)
Purple Finch (3)