Picking up my hooded merganser[updated pictures]

From a taxidermist down in Searsport who specializes in ducks.Will post pictures later today after Wife and I get back home.

She's taking you Shopping again?

1st duck I ever shot was a Hooded Merganser- should've had it mounted... look forward to the pics

Lol.....I did promise to treat her out to dinner

Looking forward to the pictures!

Had these done about 10 years ago.They get dusted every 5 years whether they need it or not-yikes I think my 5 years is up.

They are a beautiful duck. I have a pair in a glass case that I am happy with. I see a lot of them in the spring on the water in front of my house. It's fun to watch their mating rituals.

Nine is under glass as well. Looks as good today as it did the day I picked it up years ago.

A Beautiful Bird

I am fortunate to be able to photograph them from my window as they perform for me. Actually, they are performing for the hen.

Waterfowl taxidermy is a nice addition to any man cave etc.I'm still waiting for the right blue goose to add to my collection of waterfowl.Look forward to see your latest addition.

mounted this 30 plus years ago myself, 1st one ever saw here now they are all over the river. coolest bird ever, love divers

Raining when we left.Drove back in a snow storm.

Nice looking mounts. They are a neat looking bird

Nice! Hoodies are very striking. I've only had one chance at taking a prime hoodie but fanned miserably. Not a bird you get a chance at every year out here.

Nice mount

Beautiful birds, not fit to eat unless you like a fishy taste

Nice looking Mount

Yeah but you can saw a cord of wood with the bill... cool looking bird, not a duck.

I saw one on my pond a few years back and asked one of my buddies who is a duck hunter…I explained it to him and he called it a mud duck. But they sure are beautiful!

nice

They are beautiful birds, especially right now during breeding season.
We have 2 to 4 pairs every morning on the river out back right now doing their courtship displays.
Only thing I don't like about them is the parasitic nesting in wood duck boxes, it's becoming more of an issue the past few years.
Cleaning up nest boxes and find a few unhatched eggs in about half of them.
Woodie eggs are slightly smaller and lighter colored, but the real difference is in the shell thickness.
Merganser are twice as thick.

Not only my favorite duck, but my favorite bird!

They’re a “pretty” duck, and thankfully don’t count towards our duck limit down here. We generally pass them anyways. Don’t really care for their taste…yes, I can tell a difference, lol. They do make a good training tool. If your dog will pick up a merganser, they’ll pick up anything.

He didn't know then

Nice. Their flank feathers are good for tying up a bunch of different trout flies

I'm not a guy that know any duck hunters so I have trouble with identifying them. It's kind of like this. Ducks come in bang bang bang. Retrieve ducks, look them up on line to see what they are and how many I can shoot. I didn't enjoy that part and so don't duck hunt much if any.

But once I had wave after wave of those come in. We are allowed 2 hooded 6 regular. So after the first volley it was an enjoyable evening of duck watching. I should have had them mounted but I left them on the bank to get a better angle for pictures of the birds coming in and the best looking one I had left with a red fox while I was on the other side of the pond.

O heard they were not for to eat but took the remaning one home. My wife marinade it for about a week and said it was not bad. I was at work and it was gone when I got home so guess the family liked it.