An adult male Long tailed Duck has been present for a couple of days around the Mousa Boat Landing Stage at Sandwick and with care could be viewed close in to the shore.
We left it until mid afternoon to pay a visit when the sea was calm and by standing with our backs to a small building the duck could not discern our profile and would come close. Unfortunately others not understanding this simple procedure would stand on the edge of the small cliff their profile obvious on the skyline which would cause the duck to swim further out into the bay.
It's not for me to tell people what to do. I have long ago learnt that it is pointless and can often lead to conflict and upset so I keep my counsel although sometimes it is difficult not to speak out.Instead I bit my lip and waited until the few other people present left and it was only the two of us that remained.We sat low down at the back of the beach with the rocks and bank of the shallow cliff concealing our profile and the duck came ever closer on a rising tide.It worked like a charm.
A Purple Sandpiper fed with Turnstones on the rocks nearby but our focus was on the duck which was certainly a stunner in its winter plumage of white, grey and chocolate brown, the rose pink band on its bill prominent.
We watched, admired and photographed it to our heart's content and for quite some time, enjoying the peace and the murmur of gentle waves breaking on the shore whilst Rock Pipits skittered after flies on the piles of kelp that had washed up on the tideline after the recent storms.
The duck was diving constantly in its search for food throughout our observation with a couple of Herring Gulls, as ever showing mild interest in its activities and hoping to snatch a meal.
Long tailed Ducks breed in the tundra and taiga regions of the Arctic Circle and a proportion of the world population move southwards to mainly winter around Scotland.
They are not a rare bird in Shetland and as with many birds in Shetland have acquired their own collquial name of Calloo (in this case onomatopoeic) based on the drake's yodelling call which has also more fancifully been likened to the sound of hounds baying in the distance and even to the sound of bagpipes - quite appropriate for a bird whose main wintering areas are around Shetland, Orkney and the north east coast of Scotland.
This opportunity to see such a beautiful creature in such pleasing and peaceful surroundings felt an ideal end to our penultimate day on Shetland
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