Bufflehead Duck Stickers

When the light of the winter sun hits the head of the adult male Bufflehead just right, his feathers iridesce, becoming a beautiful rainbow. North America's small diving ducks are always a treat to watch, and at North Vancouver's Ambleside Park, an unusually high count of 40 of these normally more retiring ducks was swimming very close to shore.

That's no baby -- she's a lady! Looking deceptively like a baby duck, this full grown Bufflehead hen struck the perfect pose for me at one of the inner ponds at the Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary. Curious "sentries" like this one will often detach themselves from the flock to satisfy their curiosity about those lenses pointed in their direction. There was just enough afternoon sunlight left to reflect the blue skies in the waters, paint a catchlight in this Bufflehead's eyes, and cast a soft glow on her face.

My #novembird Day 3 drawing. The prompt was “swim.”

for a friend

A Bufflehead was swimming in the water.

5 species of North American waterbirds, specifically ducks, layered in a repeating pattern! Includes wood ducks, American wigeons, common goldeneyes, mallard ducks, and bufflehead ducks. Hand-painted in acrylic paint and layered digitally.

A bufflehead duck in flight, hand-painted in gouache.

Bufflehead Duck

Bufflehead Portrait

5 species of North American waterbirds, specifically ducks, layered in a repeating pattern! Includes wood ducks, American wigeons, common goldeneyes, mallard ducks, and bufflehead ducks. Hand-painted in acrylic paint and layered digitally.

Bufflehead duck illustration for home design

Bufflehead Pair

A collection of five hand-painted North American ducks! Including a mallard duck, bufflehead duck, common goldeneye, American wigeon, and a wood duck.

Because who doesn't love a cheerful duck?