Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

Long-tailed Duck (Clangula hyemalis)

Long-tailed Duck [lateral view]: Photograph Credit: Stephen J. Stedman; Cane Creek Park, Putnam County, Tennessee, 25 December 2003.

Abundance: Very Uncommon; 19 records in 12 Regional counties, 4 in Kentucky and 8 in Tennessee (Map of UCR Distribution); data from the Regional bird-monitoring efforts are too few to determine a trend in the population wintering in the Region (see also Regional Bird-Monitoring Plan).

Status: Winter Resident with records during fall (3), one of which merges with a winter record, winter (14), one of which merges with a fall record; and spring (3); photographs (see above and 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).

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

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

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 [8 May 2002], Susan H. Ford, Michael P. O'Rourke, Louann I. Gum, Ginger K. Ensor et al.; Casteel 2002c; Hoff 2002c), a Spring Bird Count record on last date.

20 December 2003–4 February 2004 (1—juvenile male) Cane Creek Park, Cookeville, Putnam County, Tennessee  (Barbara H. Stedman, Stephen J. Stedman photo [see above], Michael J. Hawkins photo; Casteel 2004b), a CBC record on first date.

1 January 2004 (2) c.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).

29 May 2005 (1—male) mouth of Sulfur Creek embayment, Dale Hollow Lake, Clay County, Tennessee (Gregg Nivens).

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

27/28 December 2010 (1—probable adult female) Barren River Reservoir, Barren/Allen counties, Kentucky (David L. Roemer/Steve and Janet Kistler).

17 February–2 April 2013 (1—female) Lake Breckenridge, Cumberland County, Tennessee (Edmund K. LeGrand photo [21 February 2013]), a product of the Pooled Data Event conducted as part of the Great Backyard Bird Count on first date of observation.

3–4 January 2014 (2) Lake Karen, Warren County, Tennessee (N. P. "Mac" McWhirter photo [distant; on first date], Susan N. McWhirter, R. Gregg Garrison), a CBC record.

16 February 2014 (1—male) Holpp's Pine Ridge Lake, Overton County, Tennessee (Janie C. Finch photo).

Regional Extreme Dates: 

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

    Late Spring: 29 May 2005 (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).  

Check-lists of Birds for the Counties of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of each county of the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed by clicking on the links below. For each county, there are two check-lists: one list that shows the species that have been observed and where possible documented in the county within the larger list for the entire Region; and one list that includes only the species observed in the county with annotations for the date and observers for at least one sighting (the ultimate goal of the latter list will be to include annotations for the very first known Regional observation of each species in that county; this goal is probably one that will take many years to complete, if completion is even a possibility). To see if the species discussed in this species account has been observed in a county, click below or click on the link for the Map of UCR Distribution near the top of the page.

Check-lists of Birds for Some Public Access Birding Sites of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of some public access birding sites within the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed via the links below. To see if the species dealt with in this species account has been observed within any of these sites, click on the appropriate link below. See the pages for each county within the Gazetteer for links to additional smaller public access birding sites with check-lists in progress.

Literature Cited