Mergansers show up on area waters

As I traveled down the road bordering the west ponds of Market Lake, the first ducks I happened across were seven of the beautiful, streamlined Red-breasted mergansers that had arrived from Mexico. In the last week, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game had opened the road since the elk had moved off the wildlife management area. It was a pleasant experience to drive along the water’s edge identifying over 40 species of birds as it took me three hours to travel two miles and back again.

Not a quarter of a mile from the seven Red-breasteds, I spotted two of their cousins, a pair of Common mergansers with the male dressed in his striking white-and-black plumage. They hightailed it toward the northern end of the road.

About an hour later, as I neared the end of the route after studying hundreds of ducks, coots and shorebirds, I saw the Common mergansers. As I stopped to get a picture, I noticed two small ducks tucked up against the canal bank. They got a little nervous and as they started swimming away from the bank, the male Hooded merganser spread out his beautiful white crest edged in black. Within two miles I was able to see all three of North America’s mergansers. Not a common occurrence, unless you visit Camas Creek running into Mud Lake.

All three species of mergansers are equipped to feed on fish and other aquatic animals. One of their locally favorite foods maybe crayfish or small catfish that are found in most area waters. They prefer hunting in water less than 15 feet deep and will look for prey as they swim with their heads under water before diving for the food item.

The Common merganser is the largest of the three and most of them migrate to Mexico for the winter, but a few of them do not migrate, staying along the Henrys Fork and the South Fork of the Snake River. Those that migrate still prefer fresh water to hunt and lounge on. They are also the first of the three to migrate back to Idaho for nesting. They are cavity nesters and will readily use nest boxes with an entrance hole about five inches across. They will sometimes nest on the ground but prefer mature forests to find suitable cavities for their nesting.

The Red-breasted specie is the fastest of the three, commonly flying faster than 80 miles per hour and all of them migrate to Mexico for the winter. They are different than the Common as they prefer to hunt and fish in salt or brackish water on the shoreline. They are also different in that they prefer to nest on the ground, and they dive in deeper water for up to three minutes, longer than their two cousins.

My favorite of the three are the smallest, the Hooded mergansers, named after the crests that the male exhibits during the spring. These also nest in old woodpecker nests and really like to use man-made boxes for nests with a three-inch opening. They also migrate in groups. This week I observed eight males flirting with two females on Camas Creek running into Mud Lake.

A friend called me that lives in the Ririe area and told me that at the start of the week he had one pair on their pond and that the number has now grown to four pair with another four pair of Wood ducks. Right now both species are looking for cavities to nest in and building and putting out nests will help them out.

Nests plans for these birds can be found on the internet, by googling “Plans for Wood duck nests” and follow their instructions. I have six out along rivers in the Rexburg area and have found that not only these birds use them, but also small owls and hawks, like Saw-whets and Kestrels.

The migration routes are now very busy with waterfowl, shorebirds and even songbirds passing through our area. Be careful out there and continue dodging all the miniature snowballs falling from the sky.