Canvasbacks (Aythya valisineria) are large diving ducks with long sloping foreheads. For the most part they inhabit lakes and ponds, and they are omnivores, eating seeds, plant tubers, mussels, insects, and more. I saw two canvasback drakes in the Hudson River on December 31, 2018, north of the Harlem Piers. They were swimming around in the water around West 135th Street. Canvasbacks had visited the same area in 2017, but I had failed to find them. So it was fun to finally see these two diving and resting.
A fun quote from the Cornell Web site: “The species name of the Canvasback, valisineria, comes from Vallisneria americana, or wild celery, whose winter buds and stems are the duck’s preferred food during the nonbreeding period.”
Canvasback drake, Hudson River north of Harlem Piers, December 31, 2018
The Filming the Feathers video is set to Franz Schubert’s Impromptu No. 4 in F minor, D. 935, performed by Chiara Bertoglio. The music was obtained from MusOpen.org, a royalty-free music source.
Canvasback drakes, December 31, 2018
