Nice to Look at, Not Eat

I think Common Mergansers are quite handsome. They have been passing through for 2-3 weeks on their way to nesting areas north of the Dakotas.

Surprisingly, I have not seen Red-breasted Mergansers yet, and they nest here in ND. We had a brood of 12 on the river right by our house last summer.

Both species may rival eiders for being really difficult to eat. Fish can taste like fish and be great; ducks not so much.

-Frank