I love photographing ducks and other waterfowl during Pacific Northwest winters. 26 different duck species spend time in Western Washington and are relatively easy to find and photograph. And what an amazing variety of colors, shapes, and behavior to choose from! One of my favorite ducks is the Surf Scoter. Here are a few recent photos of Semiahmoo Surf Scoters taken from the Semiahmoo spit in northwest Washington.

Surf Scoters winter in Washington’s salt water bays like Puget Sound. I’m able to photograph them in the sound near where I live in Edmonds, Washington. But to get really close-up scoter photos with lots of scoters to choose from, I travel north about 2 hours to the Semiahmoo spit. Drayton Harbor is on one side of the 1.25-mile long spit and Semiahmoo Bay is on the other side. Amazing duck photography is available from both sides of the narrow spit.

The Surf Scoter in the photo above was in a large group swimming just offshore in Drayton Harbor. Once the birds got used to me sitting on a log on the beach they would swim in quite close to where I was sitting and I was able to take lots of closeup photos. The male scoter’s unique yellow and orange bill and white patches on the forehead and back of the neck really make these birds stand out from the other ducks. Surf Scoters are classified as diving ducks or sea ducks as they spend the non-breeding time of the year on salt water bays and the ocean. They dive to or near the sea floor for mussels, clams, small crabs and other invertebrates.

The photo above is of a male Surf Scoter flying in to join a large group of Semiahmoo Surf Scoters. As you can see, it was a sunny (but cold) day with plenty of light that enabled shooting at high enough shutter speeds to freeze the action.

There are two other species of scoters that you can find at Semiahmoo and other places in Washington during the winter. I’ll post some pictures of these–the White-winged Scoter and Black Scoter–in the future.