Identifying birds can get confusing when you get ‘official’ hybrids recognised as one of the options. Generations of cross-breeding of escaped or released northern hemisphere Mallards with the closely related Pacific Black Ducks has resulted in established “Mallard-Pacific Black Duck (hybrid)” populations, identified by a variety of identifying characteristics.
Ignoring all that, the iridescent green head and blue speculum are pretty stunning when the sunlight catches the colours.
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