On Sept. 21, a female northern pintail duck visited Turtle Pond. I have rarely seen pintails. In fact, the only other times I've seen pintails in Central Park were Nov. 20 and Nov. 30, 2013, when male pintails (I think two, though both sightings may have been of the same male) visited the Pool at 103rd Street and the north end of the Reservoir.
Female northern pintail at Turtle Pond, Sept. 21, 2016
I included the male pintails I saw in 2013 in my Reservoir Ducks II video. I am now including that footage, plus video I took on Sept. 21, in a new Filming the Feathers video. The music is the third movement of a Beethoven wind octet, performed by Soni Ventorum Wind Quintet.
The Audubon Web site has a gorgeous pintail photo, and a lot of good info on these handsome birds.
The first five photos in the following gallery are of the male pintail duck taken in November 2013. The other photos are of our female visitor on Sept. 21.
