Unidentified duck

Very interesting,intriguing and mysterious spotting.
Will wait to hear about it from your next visit.

Thanks you all for your further comments on this intriguing pair!
Emma, Rosy-billed Pochard x Wood Duck is indeed what was first suggested by Liam for this pair earlier in this conversation (just scroll down the comments). The Rosy-billed Pochard is not a local species either. Certainly this duck is not just pure Wood duck. I hope to visit this pond again before winter to see it out of eclipse, if there're still there. As indicated by Malcolm a pair of pure Wood ducks were seen there in 2009. I have stopped at this pond twice a year since 2010 and this summer was the first time I saw this pair there, together with the usual culprits mentioned in the notes.

Here is a Rosy Billed X Wood Duck Hybrid.
http://www.flickr.com/groups/hybridbirds...
imagine this in Eclipse Plumage and it would be similar to the duck in pic 1.

possible pointer is the red iris ( Wood duck x rosybill also shows this as both parents have a red iris)indicating that two redeyed parenst are likely.

http://www.messybeast.com/genetics/hybri...

http://www.ducks.org/conservation/waterf...
Bob ,you might find this informative.

No problem Malcolm.

Sorry Emma, I misunderstood the comment as my lousy internet would not let me see the link. My first thought on seeing these (Daniele posted them on facebook a while before here) was male eclipse Mallard and female Mandarin, then we found the picture of the pair of Wood ducks in the same location 3 years ago, hence Daniele's hope to revisit later to see what they actually are and maybe get some local info about them.

Malcolm,my link was provided more so to show how different plumages change the appearance of the Duck than to try and Id the Duck.

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Emma, the Wood Ducks have the same speculum as a Mallard, shiny blue or green (varies in different lighting conditions) with white borders although the upper border of the Wood duck is often hidden by the wing coverts, as appears so in this picture. The eye pattern on the female is only shared by Wood duck and Mandarin. Based on these observations and other visible patterns this pair can only be Carolina Wood Duck in eclipse. The top base of the upper mandible is totally wrong for Mallard.

http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/717...
Mallard in Eclipse plumage. I spotted this last year and would have never guessed it was a mallard but for its blue band with white borders. This indicates a pure mallard.

I would agree these are wood ducks in eclipse plumage.

It is possible that these could be the same pair as 3 years ago, if they turn out to be pure Wood Ducks when they come out of eclipse. Although their life span in the wild is only 3-4 years, in captivity it is well into the teens. There are quite a number of escaped Wood Ducks in Switzerland (various internet sources) but so far the only mention I found of Rosy-billed Pochard is captive in the Netherlands.

Hi Liam! I agree the high-placed knob is highly suggestive of the Rosy-billed pochard. I am likely to be back there in winter if not earlier, so I'll keep an eye on this pair and ask around.

I think Red-crested Pochard hybrid would show a fiery sheen on the crown and nape, instead of blue. The high-placed knob is also suggestive of Rosybill. I am assuming both this drake and his girlfriend were at one time captive. The drake's parents were probably, if not definitely, captive.

Thanks everyone for your further comments on these intriguing birds, and thank you Liam for your suggestion and precious info! I can totally see why you mention the Rosy-billed Pochard, but would you consider red-crested pochard x wood duck a possibility? I am saying this as the red-crested pochard is at least commonly seen there; there were 3 when I visited. A pair of pure wood ducks was spotted there 3 years ago. Also, do you think these birds have a bit of mallard in them as well?

wow lovely find and nice discussion!

Nice discovery!

Bob Spader, I have seen it occurring spontaneously. I might have to look thru my spottings to find a spontaneous occurrence in a nature reserve, Let me see if I can dig it out.

Liam, great input as usual. As neither the Rosy-billed Pochard nor the Wood Duck is endemic to Europe, do you have any thoughts as to how this hybridization occurred? Intentionally done in captivity?

The beauty of Water fowl!They go thru so many plumages.

Captive or feral Wood Duck are prone to hybridization. This individual is a Rosy-billed Pochard x Wood Duck hybrid. The reason he looks so ragged is because July-August are the months for eclipse molt. The drakes lose their brilliant adornment to match the hen. The reason for this is that they can lose their flight feathers and the bright colors attract predators. Since this drake is a hybrid, his eclipse plumage is slightly different than that of a normal Wood Duck.
Here is a link to show what he may look like in breeding plumage: http://www.flickr.com/groups/hybridbirds...

Bob, all the ducks there are the moment are native species with the exception of the Bahama pintail (which is banded). The native ducks can be observed flying in and out, and the pond is near Lake Geneva which hosts large populations or residents and migratory ducks. It is possible that these ducks have been placed here; I could try and find out.

The blue color is interesting but not as unusual as I had thought after looking at some other spottings. What is interesting to me is: What are these birds doing on a small pond in Switzerland? As you mentioned other escapees, I am assuming that the Wood Ducks are as well. But, if they are hybrids, were they bred as hybrids? In North America a hybrid Wood Duck is unusual but in Switzerland it would seem to be very rare if not intentionally done in captivity.

Also a note about the colours Bob: they have not been enhanced, but the pictures were taken at a very high ISO as the ducks were under obscure foliage and I didn't want to use flash light.