# Anyone ever shoot one of these in N.D.?



## Rick Acker

This is a Red Breasted Merganser I just mounted it for a customer in Rhode Island. They are the least common on the 3 N.A. Mergansers. I would say the Hooded is by far the most common in N.D. Although, I know of guys shooting Common Mergansers in N.D. too!


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## Norm70

What are the smallest of the species? I shot a merganser opening day this year. I could tell by the beak. Anyway it really had no color to it so i did not think anything of it. I guess it is really rare to shoot one though.


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## Rick Acker

The Common is the largest and I believe the Hooded is smaller than the Red Breasted!


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## Norm70

I know the commons are quite big, this one was really small i am sure it was a lesser.


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## Triple B

shot a hen red-breasted merganser this past fall. blew the hell out of it so mounting it was out of the question.


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## 4CurlRedleg

I don't eat em' so I wouldn't kill em'. Cool looking bird though.


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## R y a n

Rick Acker said:


> The Common is the largest and I believe the Hooded is smaller than the Red Breasted!


That's correct. The common is the largest almost coming close to the size of a loon. We have quite a few common's out here in Western Washington.

The hoodie is the smallest being closer to the size of a ruddy duck or wood duck.

The red breasted do come through North Dakota. They are closer in size to a pintail, looking long and sleek in the hand. My father shot one in the late 1980's and we have it mounted. It was a female and definitely is a red-breasted. The female has an overall gray body, reddish-brown head, and reddish eyes. There is no obvious white chin-patch as in the female Common Merganser. The juvenile is similar to the female but has a white bar across its face. Non-breeding adult males appear similar to females as well. I'll see if I can post a picture up here of it.

Regards,

Ryan


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## Bob Kellam

NO

But If I ever do you will be the one I take it to Rick..
:beer:

Nice Mount

Bob


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## greenheadfallon

Yeah rick that is a great mount. :beer:


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## fishunt

hood mergansor is the smallest and second was red breast mergansor and the largest is common perganer I have alot of time on east coast ... red breasts mergansor is over popultion tooo many ... but hood mergansor not many as common mergansor


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## WingedShooter7

thats an awesome mount any chance of you posting more images of it?


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## honkbuster3

Great mount , I have shot way too many of those damn things. I have found a great way of cooking them though so that balances them out. There are sooooo many of them down here in Reno. It scary


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## Bird_Killer09

I live in atertown SD, and i shot a hen redbreasted merganser last fall on goose lake
I will be mounting it very soon


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