Hooded Mergansers (Lophodytes cucullatus) are small, fish-eating diving ducks with a long thin bill serrated on the sides.  This striking beauty can be seen in the autumn spending time on Halcyon and Auburn Lakes.  The male is unmistakable with his puffy, rounded crest with large white patch, outlined in black and gold eyes.  Females, on the other hand, have a bushy brown crest.

Photo by Helen Abrams, Friends of Mount Auburn Volunteer.