Super cool hybrid....

Jay Anglin

Jay Anglin

Well-known member
Got a text message yesterday morning from a friend asking what in the heck he had just killed. He pulled up thinking he was shooting at a woody which is the main attraction where he was hunting. I asked for a couple more photos and told him I'd have to see it but it looks like a Hooded Merganser/Wood Duck hybrid. He brought it by the house on his way home.....
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When he told me it was banded....well that's just flat out amazing!
 
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and it's banded!!!!!???
should be interesting to get the band info, I think I would submit a pix to the banders
 
Jay,

He definitely needs to at least send pics in. Let us know what it is listed as from the band info. Got any nuclear power plants nearby?
 
I'm dying to know what the band information says.'Hard to believe a woody was involved.
I've never seen a hybrid that didn't involve a mallard.Pretty interesting!
 
You know the old saying" you always know who your Mother is, your never quite sure of your Father"

I would put my money on Woody/ hoody cross.

what ever it is it sure is cool and hope it ends up on the wall.
 
I think I have him talked into mounting it. It's not a pretty bird by any stretch and it was well shot but I think a pose similar to the one in the photo would work where he's on a log resting...the flank feathers are classic hoody but he was rigged up pretty good and I didn't want to break the wing or damage the feathers by folding the wing under them. I went as far as to put him in a bag and tape it up and tell him to freeze it and if he decided not to do it I would.

He had already called it in which is unfortunate because I would have liked to have filled the form online and see what came up right away. Now there's the wait for the mail man. I'll be real curious to see if the bander caught it. I can't imagine any biologist worth his salt missing it if they were IDing birds but some of those banding drives are crazy and if ten Cub Scouts were standing there with Wood Ducks waiting to get banded I can see a worn out bander not catching it. My guess is it'll come up as a hybrid. Once the bander sees the photos it'll be recorded as a hoody/woody because it clearly is...I'll be sure they see the photos regardless.

To be honest I was honored to hold such a unique animal. To put it into perspective I told him he had much better odds of shooting a woody with a Miner band yesterday morning....then he got it.
 
Most hybrids do involve mallards, but I believe the second on the list is the wood duck. Very nice pics.
Al
 
Looks like a pretty classic Woodie Hoodie cross to me. I hope Clint sees this because I bet he has seen some in person. I think they happen fairly often in captivity. I'm pretty sure I've read about and seen pictures of hoodies crossing with about every other tree nesting duck.
A very neat wild cross and a band to go with it. I bet it would taste better then the pure hoodies I've ate. hehehe

Tim
 
Jay,
Thanks for showing that unique bird. Hoepfully the band return will show accurate ID by the biologist. However, to a certain degree it may depend on who it was. Some of those guys I've met are down right stuck up about any hybrid bird. They won't even talk about it. I've seen one biologist literally realize I had a hybrid diver then turn his back on me and walk away like I had the plaque. Or rather the bird had it.
Nonethe less, it is a nice bird and will make a unique mount.
 
It is a wood duck/hooded merganser hybrid.

Hooded mergansers have long been documented using wood duck nesting boxes.
I can imagine this is a key factor in the hybridization of this bird.

I would love to know what it's call sounded like, as well as it's diet.

I just can't believe it's banded.

Do all the research you can once the info is returned.
I would be searching for the officers who banded the bird to gather any additional info.

Congratulations.
 
Thanks Jay, one of the neatest things I've seen in a long while - WOW banded hybrid.
 
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