Northern Pintail

Anas acuta

Anseriformes / Anatidae · Holarctic, migratory · first seen April 2024 · 8 sightings

Northern Pintail preening on an open branch — Before the wind picked up.

Northern Pintail in flight, banking low — Midsummer, soft overcast.

There is no single easy ID on the northern pintail; there are three or four, and you learn them one trip at a time.

Structure is the best clue at distance: in flight the northern pintail has a particular proportion you start to recognize before any field mark resolves.

Regional occurrence notes: I usually catch this species in the holarctic part of its range.

The best individual bird I’ve had was hunting in thin morning light, long enough for me to watch rather than shoot for once.

Anyway: not a rare bird, not a hard bird, but one I want on every trip.