{"id":98178,"date":"2021-12-14T05:27:48","date_gmt":"2021-12-14T12:27:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=98178"},"modified":"2022-01-31T04:55:39","modified_gmt":"2022-01-31T11:55:39","slug":"common-merganser-in-a-morning-mist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/12\/14\/common-merganser-in-a-morning-mist\/","title":{"rendered":"Common Merganser In A Morning Mist"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"CommonCommon Merganser in a morning mist \u2013 Nikon D500, f8, 1\/1600, ISO 400, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

On winter mornings at my local pond there are days when the mist rising up from the water presents opportunities to take photos that are different from the ones that look like they belong in a bird guide book. The mist can create a moodiness in the photos I take which I find very appealing even if my avian subject is in back light, side light, or in just plain poor light.<\/p>\n

It was early in the morning when I photographed this immature Common Merganser in a morning mist almost five years ago at my local pond. The mist rising from the water seemed to dance over the water and the birds because of a light breeze. I couldn’t quite capture that in a still image but I did like this one photo of the merganser that I took that day.<\/p>\n

Even though the Common Merganser in this photo isn’t well lit even novice birders can tell it is a merganser from its long, narrow body shape. The long, thin bill shape gives more information about which species it is and the white chin patch can clinch the identification of Common Merganser. What is hard to see in this web sized photo is that there is a double patch of white on the chin which further identifies this bird as an immature or first winter Common Merganser.<\/p>\n

As a bird photographer I look for opportunities to take photos that are different from the ones that I take with beautiful light over my shoulder because they present a challenge that tests my skills. Sometimes it works out and I like the resulting photos and sometimes I don’t care for the results at all but I learn something new each time I try.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of\u00a0 my Common Merganser photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It was early in the morning when I photographed this immature Common Merganser in a morning mist almost five years ago at my local pond.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":98176,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,476,709,26],"tags":[970,12639,976,4753,1129,126,4620,4067,4705,4704,4239,4420,4378,1984,8018,3996,2063,4193],"class_list":["post-98178","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-common-mergansers","category-salt-lake-county-utah","category-utah","tag-autumn","tag-backlit","tag-common-merganser","tag-diving-ducks","tag-duck","tag-ducks-2","tag-fall","tag-immature","tag-merganser","tag-mergansers","tag-mergus-merganser","tag-mist","tag-morning","tag-pond","tag-urban","tag-water","tag-waterfowl","tag-young"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/common-merganser-in-mist-mia-mcpherson-5119.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-pxw","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":113621,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/05\/31\/common-merganser-portrait-with-water-droplets\/","url_meta":{"origin":98178,"position":0},"title":"Common Merganser Portrait With Water Droplets","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 31, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"A simple portrait of a Common Merganser, featuring water droplets and a bow wave, is what I wanted to share this morning. The photo was taken at my local pond.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Common Merganser portrait with water droplets and a bow wave, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/common-merganser-spring-urban-pond-mia-mcpherson-4183.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/common-merganser-spring-urban-pond-mia-mcpherson-4183.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/common-merganser-spring-urban-pond-mia-mcpherson-4183.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/common-merganser-spring-urban-pond-mia-mcpherson-4183.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":119702,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/01\/15\/common-mergansers-and-remote-controlled-harassment\/","url_meta":{"origin":98178,"position":1},"title":"Common Mergansers And Remote Controlled Harassment","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"January 15, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"I photographed these Common Mergansers at my local pond three years ago today. I will explain why I only had a few minutes with the mergansers at my local pond.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Two immature Common Mergansers in flight, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/common-merganser-immature-flight-mia-mcpherson-8992.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/common-merganser-immature-flight-mia-mcpherson-8992.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/common-merganser-immature-flight-mia-mcpherson-8992.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/common-merganser-immature-flight-mia-mcpherson-8992.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":123760,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/03\/13\/immature-common-merganser-shaking-off\/","url_meta":{"origin":98178,"position":2},"title":"Immature Common Merganser Shaking Off","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 13, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Just a simple photo of an immature Common Merganser today. I took this image of the merganser on the Bear River almost two years ago on a bright, sunny morning.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Immature Common Merganser shaking off water on the Bear River, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/common-merganser-flapping-bear-river-mia-mcpherson-1609.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/common-merganser-flapping-bear-river-mia-mcpherson-1609.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/common-merganser-flapping-bear-river-mia-mcpherson-1609.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/common-merganser-flapping-bear-river-mia-mcpherson-1609.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":109742,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/01\/20\/urban-drake-common-merganser-photos\/","url_meta":{"origin":98178,"position":3},"title":"Urban Drake Common Merganser Photos","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"January 20, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"I can be way too picky when it comes to sharing my images. Today I'll explain why with these urban drake Common Merganser photos taken at my local pond.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Common Merganser drake about to dive, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/common-merganser-drake-urban-mia-mcpherson-0156.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/common-merganser-drake-urban-mia-mcpherson-0156.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/common-merganser-drake-urban-mia-mcpherson-0156.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/common-merganser-drake-urban-mia-mcpherson-0156.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":118413,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/11\/21\/drake-hooded-merganser-memory\/","url_meta":{"origin":98178,"position":4},"title":"Drake Hooded Merganser Memory","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"November 21, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Once upon a chilly December evening, I had a blast photographing a stunning drake Hooded Merganser in gorgeous light at an urban pond close to home.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Drake Hooded Merganser splashing after landing, Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/hooded-merganser-drake-mia-mcpherson-5141.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/hooded-merganser-drake-mia-mcpherson-5141.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/hooded-merganser-drake-mia-mcpherson-5141.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/hooded-merganser-drake-mia-mcpherson-5141.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":110602,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/03\/01\/hen-common-merganser-at-bear-river-mbr\/","url_meta":{"origin":98178,"position":5},"title":"Hen Common Merganser At Bear River MBR","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 1, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Last month I photographed this hen Common Merganser in a small spot of open water next to an ice shelf at Bear River MBR. It was a very cold morning.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Hen Common Merganser flapping her wings next to an ice shelf, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/common-merganser-winter-ice-hen-mia-mcpherson-3163.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/common-merganser-winter-ice-hen-mia-mcpherson-3163.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/common-merganser-winter-ice-hen-mia-mcpherson-3163.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/common-merganser-winter-ice-hen-mia-mcpherson-3163.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98178","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=98178"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98178\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/98176"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=98178"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=98178"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=98178"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}