red-breasted merganser?

[Twitcheruth]

How unusual to see one of each of these birds together.....well spotted and captured Andrew!

[RoyW__]

Originally Posted by Dave Appleton

Well I certainly agree the left hand one is a Goosander, but is it a male? It's a tough call to determine the exact colour of the head - perhaps it's only safe to say it's dark but to my eyes it looks more like it's dark reddish brown than greenish black. Also I think I can see a hint of a pale chin which would also point to it being a female (or young male).

It's certainly not an adult male, but I don't think it is possible to go further than that.

Originally Posted by Jynx_69

That'll teach me not to bother trying to ID stuff on my tiny netbook! Nice one Dave

Look at it as useful experience! You can't see all the details properly on a small screen, but you don't always get to see all the details properly in real life either (though you do then usuall have the benefit of different angles and/or the way the bird moves and behaves).
More often than not my initial ID's on site like this are made after viewing photos on my phone screen - mobile internet access is very useful for passing the time!