Lifer # 154 - Garganey

My second local lifer for the year, and it's a mega.  I saw it while afternoon birding in the north.  The bird was a Garganey (Spatula querquedula), a small dabbling duck that breeds mostly in Europe and Asia.  It was among a flock of Blue-winged Teals (Spatula discors) and could have easily been mistaken for the female of that species, but what alerted me that it was different, was the distinctive facial markings, two clearly defined lines, one passing through the eyes and the other just below.  Also, the brownish patch just above the eyes, and the lack of the white patch at the base of the bill were not field markings of the Blue-winged Teal. 

Comparing the Female BW Teal, (front), and Garganey (back)

Taking the field markings into account, I tentatively thought - Garganey but having ever only seen an example of one in a field guide, I wanted expert confirmation. That was found with our local expert Ed Massiah, who I shared images with on our local Bird Alert messaging board, and Whatsapped said images to a friend and bird expert living in Guadeloupe,  Anthony Levesque of Birding Guadeloupe (If you are visiting Guadeloupe and need a guide, look him up, he's the best).  Both of them confirmed Garganey.  The task now is to get quality images of this species before it migrates.

Here is how my birding numbers look: 

• Barbados - 154 species
• West Indies - 198 species
• World - 363 species
• 2023 checklist 

can you find the Garganey among the BW Teal?