Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

Long-tailed Duck (Clangula hyemalis)

Abundance: Very Uncommon (15 records in 9 counties, 4 in Kentucky and 5 in Tennessee).

Status: Winter Resident (3 fall records, one of which merges with a winter record; 10 winter records, one of which merges with a fall record; and 3 spring records; photographs (see links below).

Regional High Count: 18 (10 January 2004; Waitsboro Recreation Area, Lake Cumberland, Pulaski County, Kentucky; Roseanna M. Denton photo).

Information on Records: 

13 December 1989 (1--female) Cooley's Pond, Wayne County, Kentucky (Jackie B. Elmore, Sr.; Stamm 1990b).

22 November 1996 (1) Holly Creek, Dale Hollow Lake, Clay County, Tennessee (David L. Roemer unpubl. data).

12 November 1997 (1) Waitsboro Recreation Area, Lake Cumberland, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data and photo), photo.

25 January-10 February 1998 (1--female) Bledsoe County, Tennessee (Debbie Shannon, Roi Shannon; Knight 1998b).

13 December 1998 (7) Waitsboro Recreation Area, Lake Cumberland, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton, Margaret York, James York unpubl. data).

24 December 1998 (1--male) Wolf Creek Dam, Russell County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton unpubl. data).

17 November-16 December 2000 (1--female) Cane Creek Park, Cookeville, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, m. ob.; Casteel 2001a; Welsh 2000b), CBC record.

6 December 2000 (1) Barren River Reservoir, Barren County, Kentucky (David L. Roemer photo; Busroe 2001b), photo (6 December 2000, David L. Roemer).

8-11 May 2002 (1--male) Cane Creek Park, Cookeville, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman photo, Susan H. Ford, Michael P. O'Rourke, Louann I. Gum, Ginger K. Ensor et al.; Casteel 2002c; Hoff 2002c), photo (8 May 2002, Stephen J. Stedman); Spring Bird Count record.

20 December 2003-4 February 2004 (1--juvenile male) Cane Creek Park, Cookeville, Putnam County, Tennessee  (Barbara H. Stedman, Stephen J. Stedman photo, Michael J. Hawkins photo; Casteel 2004b), photo (25 December 2003, Stephen J. Stedman); CBC record.

1 January 2004 (2) about 1 km west end of Waitsboro Rd., Lake Cumberland, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Stephen J. Stedman, Margaret York, Jean Brickell; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2004b), CBC record.

10 January 2004 (18+) Waitsboro Recreation Area, Lake Cumberland, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton photo; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2004b), photo.

20 March 2005 (2) Buffalo Creek, Cordell Hull Reservoir, Smith County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Winston A. Walden unpubl. data).

29 May 2005 (1--male) Mouth of Sulfur Creek embayment, Dale Hollow Lake, Clay County, Tennessee (Gregg Nivens unpubl. data).

7 December 2007 (1--adult female) Floating Mill Recreation Area, Center Hill Lake, DeKalb County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman unpubl. data).

Regional Extreme Dates: 

    Early Fall: 12 November 1997 (1) Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton).

    Late Spring: 29 May 2005 (1 male) Clay County, Tennessee (Gregg Nivens).

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: No registrations.

Habitat: Usually found on large, open lakes, but also appears on smaller bodies of water.

Remarks:  The May record in Clay County represents the late spring departure date for Tennessee, as well as for the Region.

    Most records involve single birds that are recorded just 1 day at a site, but this sea duck also reveals a tendency to remain at favorable sites for moderate periods of time (2-7 weeks).  The longest known period of occurrence at one site was 47 days at Cane Creek Park lake, Putnam County, Tennessee (20 December 2003-4 February 2004).  

Counties with Observations (boldfaced):

To see a map (Figure 1) displaying the data in the table above, click on the boldfaced word in this sentence.

Literature Cited: