These are as good as any shots I’ve managed of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks. A relative new comer to the east coast and also a shy bird.
A Central and South American bird, but also in Mexico and Texas. First they drifted to south Florida. Now they also in in Georgia and coastal South Carolina.
And they do whistle instead of the usual duck ‘quacks’.
What is so amazing is that there are 4 of them living near the mere which is part of the National Trust property (Tatton Park) adjacent to our English town, but not in the park. They are on the overflow of the mere, right near the centre of town and are hanging out with the swans, gulls, coots, moorhens and tufted ducks. Think they might be escapees, but only having seen them before in Houston we did a huge double take!
Escapees sounds right. They are mostly a tropical duck. Until recently Texas and Louisiana were the only US states with any. Even now I don’t think they go much further than South Carolina. All ranges I saw are a South America to southern North America.