Last night, thanks once again to my sharp eyed son who saw the bird drop in behind me, I saw a Red-necked Phalarope at my favourite spot, the outflow of Marcil Lake. Now its a new bird at that location for me but I have seen them before. This however, is the first time I've seen one not offshore, and the first time I've seen one in basic plumage (breeding plumage).
I believed it was a male, because male phalaropes are not as brightly coloured as females (the reverse of the common theme in the bird world), but after looking at the photos I'm really not sure. It seems to be a bird that has not completed the moult into breeding plumage. A gorgeous bird, with a very interesting life history and breeding strategy.
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