Cinnamon Teal at Eastern Neck
S. Harvey Mudd, MD (shm@codon.nih.gov)
Thu, 17 Dec 1998 15:35:53 -0500
On Monday, Dec.14, Marion and I went to have a look at the Cinnamon Teal
seen by many during the past month or so at Eastern Neck NWLR. True to
form, the pair were readily found near the north end of the bridge that
passes over to the refuge.
Because the question of origin (wild or captive) is very likely to come up
with respect to any sighting of Cinnamon Teal in Maryland, we waited and
watched while the birds swan and fed near the exposed mud flats close to
the bridge. Finally, they climbed out onto the flats briefly. The female
was positioned so that we could see through the telescope that she had a
band on her left tarsus, apparently made of aluminum (or, a least, not a
color band). The right leg was unbanded. For the male, we were able to see
only the right leg, and that only partially as he preened for a moment.
Therefore, the question of whether his left leg (and/or, possibly even his
right leg) was banded remained open.
This posting is to request that anyone seeing these beautiful birds try to
determine their banded/unbanded status and, if they are able to see one way
or the other, report their observations to the Maryland/District of Columbia
Records Committee; or that anyone who has already made note of the banding
status do likewise. Although the presence of bands (or lack of bands)
clearly does not provide definitive evidence as to the origin of these
birds, information on this matter will be relevant.
Harvey Mudd
____________________________________
S. Harvey Mudd
NIMH/DIRP/LMB
Building 36, Room 1B-08
36 CONVENT DR MSC 4034
BETHESDA MD 20892-4034
tel: 301-496-0681; fax 301-402-0245
email: shm@codon.nih.gov