It was our very first birding sortie of the year 2011. My friend Neon and I spent an unseasonably warm day at the Candaba Wetlands. At the end of the day, I chalked up four lifers one of which was this lovely Wandering Whistling Duck.

These waterbirds are so named because of the whistling sound coming from their wings when they fly and their distinctive, shrill calls. Wandering Whistling Ducks inhabit the tropical and subtropical wetlands of Australia, New Guinea, Borneo and Indonesia. They are common residents in the Philippines.

Wandering Whistling Duck – Dendrocygna arcuata
Candaba Wetlands, Pampanga
January 4, 2011

Canon 5D MkII, 500mm+1.4X (700mm) handheld from car window
ISO-100, 1/400, f6.3