92 Northern Pintail

• A group of ducks are called a; Brace / Flush / Paddling / Raft / Team.
• This duck has the largest tail of any freshwater foul.
• It has a very long neck and flies with it extended.
• It has a pale chocolate brown head, with a intricate pattern of back feathers.  It has a band of green on its wings with a fringe bar of buff.
• It eats grain, rice, seeds, aquatic weeds, insect larvae, crustaceans and snails.
• It is one of the first ducks to nest, right after the ice thaws.
• It has a very harsh Quack amoung other sounds like a Wheeee, and Prreep. 
• Its numbers have been on the decline over the last 30 years due to habitat loss.

91 Western Grebe

• A group of Grebes are called a; Water Dance.
• The western Grebe is different from the Clarke's Grebe in that the Black Crown extends down past the eye.  And what an eye, red a very intense.
• The other distinguishing feature is the greenish yellow bill.
• The Western Grebe has 9 vocalizations that are used in different circumstances.  Alarm, begging, matting, are a few different calls.  They build a floating nest and attach it to reeds and coattails.   They lay 2-3 eggs and have one brood.   The babies can be seen often riding on their parents back.  How cool.
• This is one of the birds that is not afraid to defend itself.  No doubt with those red eyes.
• It is known for its artful water dance in matting ritual.  It is a great swimmer with its bulbous toes like all grebes, and can stay submerged for 30 or more seconds.
• It eats crustaceans, worms, insects and fish, large fish it will crush their heads before swallowing.

90 Horned Grebe

• A group of Grebes are called a; Water Dance.
• We found this one in a pond with 3 of the other types of Grebes.  It gets its name from the feathers behind the eyes that it can puff up to make it look intimidating. Add in those red eyes and yes it is a scary sight.
• Like all grebes they have bulbous toes instead of webbed feet.  It is a very good swimmer.
• Its nests are made of floating material that it attaches to reeds or cattails.  They lay 3-9 eggs.  Often they are seen with their chicks riding on their backs.  A common thing for Grebes and Loons.
• These birds will stay late in the fall until the pond is frozen over, then fly south.
• They eat crustaceans, insects, fish amphibians, and some aquatic plants.  It eats some of its own feathers, probably to help carry out bones from the gut.
• This is a very cautious bird.  In Blackfeet lore the Old Man Trickster would put to sleep the ducks then kill them but not the Horned Grebe he saw through this trick and warned the other birds.  Cool story.

89 Wilson's Snipe

• A group of snipes are called a; Leash / Walk / Whisper / Winnowing / Volley.
• Wilson's Snipe is still a shore bird that is hunted.  It is a fast flyer and very elusive to hunt.  Hunters who became good at hunting Snipes became known as Snipers. Sharpshooters of the 19th century and the term has stuck.
• The male makes a non-vocal sound known as Winnowing or drumming the sound is made by Vibrating outer tail feathers that are spread wide when diving.  This he does to impress the females.
• He has 16 tail feathers compared to 14 in the Common Snipe.
• Insects worms and plant material are its food.
• I took a picture of this guy in flight and it was just a blur. 

88 Pied-billed Grebe

• A group of Grebes are called a; Water Dance.
• This little grebe compared to the 4 other types I've seen is the smallest.  It avoids predators by diving under water.  It can also compress its feathers changing its specific gravity allowing it to swim with only its head showing.  "Up para-scope".  In fact it is very rarely seen flying at all.  During migration it will fly at night.  Try that without lights. Yikes. 
• The bill looks quite different than most water birds.  It reminds me of a hawk bill.
• It doesn't have webbed feet but bulbous toes and does quite well in swimming.
• It can swim for great distances underwater and has been given the nickname "Hell-diver".  Other names include; Dabchick, Devil-diver, Dive-dapper and Water-witch.
• It eats tadpoles, shrimps, aquatic insects, and other water food.
• It builds a floating nest and attaches it to reed or cattails.

87 Ruddy Duck

• A group of ducks are called a; Brace / Flush / Raft / Paddling / Team.
• This colorful duck is found in ponds ad marshes. 
• It has a chestnut colored body black neck, chest and head can have white cheeks like this one and a large blunt "beautiful blue" as Eve would say bill.
• During breeding the males will puff themselves up bill to chest tail erect and stiff, quite a show.  After the eggs are hatched they then go off and leave mom to do all the raising.
• They nest in wet boggy ground to avoid predators.  The only way to get to the nest is by air or water.

•  They are a member of the 'stiff tailed Ducks'.

86 Greater Yellowlegs

• A group of Yellowlegs are called a; Incontinence.
• These shore birds are active feeders seen running along catching fish and other fast moving aquatic prey.
• They breed in mosquito infested muskegs so they aren't studied much.  Go figure.
• They have a swift direct flight, sometimes at great heights.
• The bill is slightly turned up compared to the lesser and the vocalization is different as well 2 quick whistles for the lesser and  3 or 4 piercing notes.