advertisement

Rare duck, social media draws bird-watchers to Fox River in West Dundee

A rare Barrow's goldeneye duck appeared Thursday on the Fox River in West Dundee, and it was soon followed by excited bird-watchers who were drawn to the site by social media.

“We drove more than 30 miles just to see him,” said Sheilah Watson of Lake Zurich. “Isn't he amazing?”

The purple/blue-headed duck with large, unblinking gold eyes is native to the northwest United States and Canada and is rarely sighted in the Midwest, according to Charles Specht of Mundelein.

“In my 60 years of birding, I've never seen one,” he said as he trained his binoculars on the striking features of the water foul.

Specht said he and Watson were alerted to the sighting through social media.

“We birders are a tight group,” he explained. “When somebody sees something like this, pretty soon everybody will come to see it.”

Randall Wade of Chicago stood with them on the west shore of the Fox River with his 500 mm telephoto lens and Nikon camera on a tripod. Others stopped on the east and west sides of the river to watch as the duck dove for food and stayed under for half a minute before reappearing.

The green-headed common goldeneye can be found on the Fox River throughout the year.

  Charles Specht, of Mundelein, Sheilah Watson, of Lake Zurich, and Randall Wade, of Chicago, background, drove to West Dundee to photograph a Barrow's goldeneye duck Thursday. The blue-headed bird is native to the northwest and is rarely seen in this area. When word got out through social media, bird-watchers appeared to catch a glimpse. John Starks/jstarks@dailyherald.com
  A Barrow's goldeneye duck drew several bird-watchers to West Dundee Thursday. The blue-headed duck is native to the northwest United States and is rarely seen in the Midwest. Mundelein resident Charles Specht said he had never seen the duck in his 60 years of bird-watching. John Starks/jstarks@dailyherald.com
Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.