When ducks drop their flight feathers, does that also mean that they lose
their speculums? It seems to me that there is a time when it is hard to
tell Mallards from Gadwall, for example, because they all look like females
and no specula show.

If so, then from a practical birding standpoint, females also are in eclipse
plumage.

Can anyone clarify?

== Michael Hobbs
== Kirkland WA
== MJCT_Hobbs at msn.com