Without question, the wood duck is one of the most colorful of all North American waterfowl. Males are iridescent green and chestnut with ornate patterns on nearly every feather. The elegant females have a distinctive profile and a delicate white pattern around the eye.
As the name implies, the wood duck is associated with woodlands. You’ll find them in areas with primarily deciduous trees. I’ve seen these Technicolor-feathered birds in Hughes Hollow at McKee Beshers in Montgomery County, at Patuxent Research Refuge in Laurel, and on the Pocomoke River on the Eastern Shore. But my favorite place to see them is in Baltimore City in the Boat Lake at Patterson Park.
