Harlequin Duck
Victoria, British Columbia
One of the most recognizable sea ducks on either coast of North America, the male harlequin isn't bothered by a bit of swell as he swims past the camera on a sunny autumn afternoon. Harlequins frequent rough ocean water on a regular enough basis that in many museum specimens, X-rays reveal that the adults often live with broken bones, likely from the waves throwing them against the rocks over and over. I had seen these ducks in New Jersey before, but only British Columbia let me get down to eye level with them, to say nothing of how the water off Vancouver Island was far less choppy than anything I had dealt with on the Jersey Shore. It was a lot easier to focus on photography when the wind isn't blowing at 25 knots, and there's no need to keep an eye out for incoming big waves...although the occasional incoming ship wake still ensured that my feet got soaked through.