This report is late but Paul Hicks saw a Tufted Duck in the SW corner of the Hoquiam Sewage ponds last Saturday. I haven't had a
chance to go down and verify the bird is still there yet.

> Now whether it is full-breed
> or hybrid, I couldn't say for sure. But the "tuft" was really long, like
> 1/3 of the way to the waterline I'd estimate. It really got to flopping
> in the wind. The back was solid black or nearly so (nearly matching the
> dark front/neck/upper breast), instead of the patterned, gray-looking
> color of the scaup (which is about halfway between the dark front and the
> lightly patterned pale side/flank.) The bill tip was slightly different
> from scaup, I think with more white edge and less of a black spot (don't
> remember details). The flank/side looked virtually the same to me. All
> the ducks seemed at the peak of their coloration, with fine, subtle
> patterns really clear and distinct. The deep green head of the greaters
> was distinguishable from the deep purple of the lessers in the overcast
> light. The tufted had a purple head. I did not spot a femaie.

Bruce Fischer
Aberdeen, WA
stump at techline.com