Heat Running Ducks

Hoo boy, this morning’s run was a bit sticky! We have had a relatively mild summer to date, but this week we are back to our normal late summertime in the Midwest weather. Normally not a problem for me as I train in these conditions in order to survive the July ultra, however, we all know what happened to those plans. Speaking (or more literally, typing) of which, I returned to the “scene of the crime” a few runs back…

I know some of you were worried about the fate of that tree per my last post. It is still standing at the moment. The Corp of Engineers caught wind of my late night plans and had their troops waiting for me when I showed up in my Ghillie suit and chainsaw. Didn’t fully think through the camouflage strategy with a bright orange saw. You get to live another day you bastard Ent, but I’m still coming for pulp!! I’m through the last of my heat races so heat conditioning is not as critical…miles are more critical as the “runway” is extremely compressed to the 100K. Translated, mercury bursting or not, lace up the shoes and minimally get 10 miles checked off. Got up earlier today in hopes of beating some of the misery (“feels like” is going to 115F) – didn’t help a lot, my face looked like 50 shades of …red.

Hit the jump to read more about this richly hued species and where you can likely encounter them.

While trying to bring the internal temps down and gulping refreshing water, it dawned on me what today’s featured feathered friend should be. My red hues were self-inflicted, the Cinnamon Teal’s rich rusty/brown hues are a natural, dare I say healthy state. The breeding males also have one of the most stunning red eyes in the waterfowl category. Once the mating season has passed, the male Cinnamons molt their rich ruddy feathers and replace them with more traditional brown plumage found on the females and other Teal species.

The Cinnamon Teal is not an Illinois bird (breeding or nonbreeding), but I never worry about getting it checked off the year list as it is pretty much a “sure thing” if you know where to look. Those in the Western half of the US and down into Central America have easy access at some point in the year. The rest of us have to travel a bit.

There are three places we usually find these gorgeous ducks. The first is at Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge (link here). This is one of our top birding destinations during our January stays in Texas. Located in Hidalgo County in the Rio Grande Valley, this massive 2,088 acre refuge will give your camera an ultra-race workout. I HIGHLY recommend taking the refuge’s morning bird walks, the couple that leads them (apologies for forgetting their names) are extremely knowledgeable and adept at locating whatever bird you happen to be looking for. There is almost always two or more Cinnamons hanging out at Willow Lakes or Cattail Lakes. Maybe take a bit to locate them among the vegetation, but they’ll be there.

The second place to look for them is at Estero Llano Grande State Park (link here). This happens to be our favorite place to bird in the RGV and if you are familiar with the incredible birding in that area, you know that is saying a lot. That state park has a variety of habitats, very nice walking paths and never disappoints. They even have a pretty nice RV park that butts up against it. Our site was 50 feet from the back of Estero allowing for easy access to the trails and quick jumps back to the RV if we wanted to rest a bit. There are several water features in Estero. There is a covered deck at the visitor center that overlooks a large pond and then several larger bodies of water a relatively short walk along the rock covered trails. The Cinnamons are bit sparser here and tend to get lost in the massive amount of other birds enjoying the water. Recommend simply asking one of the always helpful rangers or volunteers and they will assuredly relay the latest sightings. Note, they also have extremely fun and productive morning bird walks.

The third, and frankly the easiest, location we find Cinnamon Teals is in Las Vegas. To be more accurate, in Henderson which sits just outside Sin City. I cannot say enough about the Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve (link here). If you are ever near there, pull yourself away from the gambling tables for a few hours and take a drive out there. Do take some water as there isn’t a lot of shade – remember, you are in a desert ha. This happens to be where this series of shots was taken at during our March visit to Nevada. Absolutely have to get the Cinnamon Teal checked off your list, then book a trip to Vegas, drive 15-20 minutes out to Henderson and then find your way out to the back of pond 2 where there is churning water from an inlet. Every time we make a visit, there are at least 10-15, (sometimes more) Cinnamons hunting that patch of churning water. Best part of all, they are completely indifferent to your presence giving you the best access you can ask for. I’ve even featured another Cinnamon encounter back in 2019 (link here). Once in the tin, you can get back to the bright lights in the sin city.

Hope you enjoyed seeing shots of probably my third favorite duck (that I have had the pleasure to photograph). The dapper Pintails (link here) take the top spot and those colorful Wood Ducks (link here) have the second spot locked up. A solid third for sure and that “ain’t too shabby”. Didn’t go into a lot of detail on this duck today, rather wanted to focus more on locations for those that are interested in finding their own specimens. Take care everyone, time for me to get some green/brown paint and give my chainsaw a stealthier look.