The drakes show no white on the head. The females and immature males are grey birds with chestnut foreheads and crowns, and can be confused at a distance with the ruddy duck; they are often known as "redhead" smew.It has oval white wing-patches in flight. The males have greenish, black heads, white bodies and black backs in breeding plumage. Male hooded mergansers have a large white crest surrounded by black. The breast and belly are white and the flanks are brown. Appearance: Male - The male Common Merganser has a black-greenish gloss head and neck, the long neck feathers make the head look larger, a white body with pink tinge, the back is glossy black with a grey tail, the wings largely white on the inner half and black on the outer half, a red thin but long hooked beak with red-orange legs and feet. The large head of the Hooded Merganser, Lophodytes cucullatus, drake is black with a large fan-shaped white crest. The top of the head, neck and back are all black, and the chest, breast and belly are white. He has a black head variable size white patch on the side, black back, white breast with a black stripe, reddish-brown sides, yellow eyes. The Common Merganser is a fish-eating duck that rides low in the water on freshwater lakes and rivers. Goldeneyes, Buffleheads and Mergansers are easily confused. Just as striking is adult drake Hooded Merganser, combining a black head and upperparts with a white-centred erectile nape 'fan', white on the front and sides of the breast and rich orange flanks, the latter inlaid with delicate dark vermiculations. The hooded merganser is the smallest of the three merganser species occurring in North America. Huge collection, amazing choice, 100+ million high quality, affordable RF and RM images. The crestless head is dark green, the bill is red, and the eye is dark. Common Mergansers, Mergus merganser, have a long slender appearance in flight. The male in breeding plumage has a white belly, breast, and flanks with a gray rump and black back. No need to register, buy now! Wavy black lines can … The hen has a brown crest and a grayish brown body. Females have gray bodies with cinnamon colored heads with shaggy crests Common Mergansers are This species is larger than the red-breasted merganser, and is one of the largest of our ducks. The drake smew, with its 'cracked ice' and 'panda' appearance, is unmistakable, and looks very black-and-white in flight. Find the perfect merganser duck black & white image. Female has reddish head with crest, brown body which is … Hooded Merganser (California, USA, 1 February 2016). The back is black with white stripes. It is one of the last to migrate south, and is more common than the red-breasted merganser on inland waters. Common Merganser Images, Facts and Information: Mergus merganser Common Mergansers are long-bodied diving ducks with long, thin reddish serrated bills, orange feet and legs and dark eyes. The male Hooded Merganser often raises the head feathers which produces a hooded effect.