Ringed-necked Duck: The long staying RND has finally moved off its wintering grounds of Eccleston Mere. A private site with no access the bird has relocated (if only temporarily) to Victoria Park on a small boating lake.
This dabbling duck, a cousin of our tufted ducks and named for the brown collar across its black neck. Both sexes carry a pale ring around the bill, close to the bean, and females have pale feathering around the base of the bill and a browny-grey body.
This North American native nests across much of Canada, Alaska, and the Arctic, with a population also breeding year-round in the northwestern portion of the continental United States.
Each year, vagrants appear in Britain, though escaped captive birds are considered with these reports.
