Peanuts In My Pocket

Over the weekend, my wife and I visited El Dorado Park to renew our annual parking pass and do a little hiking. Recent rains had turned the trails into a muddy mess, so we opted for a stroll around the model boat lake at El Dorado Park East instead. From a birding perspective, the lake is great if you like mallards and mud hens, but occasionally, you can spot something new and interesting.

Filed under why we can’t have nice things: On January 13, 2025, an armed robbery occurred at the entrance booth of El Dorado East Regional Park in Long Beach. At approximately 10:15 a.m., a man armed with a gun drove up to the booth and demanded cash from the register. Cash is no longer accepted.

I started birding in the 1970s as a Boy Scout while pursuing the Bird Study and Nature merit badges. I remember struggling to identify the required 20 species to qualify and getting help from a nature guide in exchange for picking up trash on the trail. The requirements were:

• Observing and identifying at least 20 species of wild birds
• Demonstrating proper use and care of binoculars or other bird-watching equipment
• Understanding bird anatomy and the function of bird songs

I had army surplus WWII-era binoculars that were barely up to the task, but I made do and eventually satisfied all the requirements. The Nature merit badge was even harder, but there was some birding overlap that helped.

As my wife and I walked along the small stream connecting two lakes in the east park, we didn’t see much of interest. As usual, the park was full of mallards, mallard hybrids, mud hens, Canada geese, and, since we were near the roosting trees for the black-crowned night herons, a few of those as well.

Then I spotted three ducks in the reeds—a male and female mallard, plus a third duck I didn’t recognize. I took a few shots from a distance, then moved closer for a better look. From my new position, I captured some stunning photos of a duck so colorful and beautiful that I was at a loss for words. My wife snapped a photo on her iPhone and said, “It’s a wood duck.”

My records show that I had seen wood ducks before, but it was decades ago, and I never managed to capture a photo. This sighting made them my 71st species of the year, and by far the most beautiful bird I’ve ever seen in the wild. Moments like this are why I love this hobby.

I posted my find in our Bird Nerds group chat. My friend Don was so captivated by the wood duck that he had me drop a pin on a map so he could track it down himself. He searched for hours—but he found it. Don is currently number one on our leaderboard. I really need to stop giving him hints.