Red-breasted Merganser Photo Gallery

Female/immature male

Slim, long-bodied diving duck with a long, thin bill. Female/nonbreeding males are brownish gray overall with brownish chin and dingy breast.

Breeding male

Note slender body, ragged crest, and narrow, straight bill.

Male

In flight, note thin neck, dark breast, and dark back. Tends to fly at an angle, with the head higher than the feet.

Female/immature male

Slender diving duck with a thin neck and a long, thin bill. Female/nonbreeding males have a brownish head and neck and a dingy breast.

Male

Immature males look like messy breeding males.

Immature male

Female/nonbreeding males have a brownish head with a shaggy crest. The color on the neck blends gradually into the chest without distinct white patches.

Courtship

Males dunk their chests and raise their heads and rears in a "curtsey" display for females.

Female and chick

Male

Large, slim, long-bodied duck with long, slender bill and ragged crest. Breast is smudged with reddish brown; back is dark.

Flock

Occurs in large flocks; in winter, more common in salt (or brackish) water than freshwater.