Long-Tailed Duck: Distinctive Diver

One of our winter visitors, the long-tailed duck is a standout both in appearance and in its call.

What it is: The long-tailed duck, formerly known as the oldsquaw, is another species that spends its summers in the arctic and winters on the Jersey Shore, among other places.

Long-taileds are medium-sized diving ducks, measuring about 16 to 20 inches. When we see him in winter, the male has a striking white head and breast with a dark cheek spot and a gray eye patch.

(Males undergo a remarkable plumage change in summer, when white feathers on the head are replaced by black. While you might see a bird transitioning in spring, the species doesn’t stick around here long enough for us to get a good look at the summer outfit.)

The male also has a pink band on his dark bill, and a long, graceful spear of a tail. It’s a pretty package, and with the exception of the , I think few seabirds are as attractive.

Females are a little more drab, but they also have a white head and a dark smudge of a cheek patch.

Where to find it: Like a lot of diving ducks, long-tailed ducks like to feed in rough inlet waters rich in fish and crustaceans. They’re a common winter sight at Sandy Hook and Barnegat Inlet, and in Cape May County’s Corson’s Inlet and Avalon.

They frequently congregate in small flocks in winter, which makes them all the more easy to spot.

Why bother: Duck calls aren't always particularly interesting or a useful identification tool, but long-taileds have a distinctive one. Watch a flock of long-tailed ducks closely enough and you might be lucky enough to catch it. It sounds amusingly like “owl-owl-omelet.” 

These ducks’ tendency to gather in groups also affords a lot of opportunities for watching interactive behavior among individuals.