I thought it might have been a female Ring-necked Duck, but a view through my spotting scope showed the characteristic cowlick of a female Tufted Duck, a rare visitor from Europe.

A birding activity you can do while staying warm

The Weekly Bird Report with Mark Faherty can be heard every Wednesday on WCAI, the local NPR station for Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, and the South Coast. Mark has been the Science Coordinator at Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary since August 2007 and has led birding trips for Mass Audubon since 2002. He is past president of the Cape Cod Bird Club and current member of the Massachusetts Avian Records Committee.