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Until now, the evolutionary relationship between the Southern Hemisphere mergansers, when their ancestors arrived in the region, and from where, have been unknown.

Female mergansers do a couple of interesting things that help explain how one duck could have 76 ducklings following her.

Potential bird sightings include gadwalls and buffleheads, dazzling ducks like the common goldeneye and the red-breasted merganser and tons of gulls, including the laughing gull and the ring-billed gull.

They are part of this spring’s baby bird boom at the zoo, along with a recent Orinoco goose hatchling and five merganser ducklings born this week.

After surging out of the rapid, we passed a flock of beautiful merganser ducks and Canada geese balancing on one foot.