This duck was alone on a 1± acre pond when it was frightened off. Apparently neither of us was expecting the other. It was uniformly dark as seen here. There appear to be no other local ducks with that monotonous blackish coloring. Also note the size and color of the bill: large and yellow. So far as I can determine the only duck that matches this is the Surf Scoter.

"Common on open salt water usually near rocks; uncommon to rare inland ... Heavy triangular bill distinctive, forming wedge-shaped head." (David Allen Sibley's The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America, p. 85)

"Medium-sized scoter with long deep-based bill. Bill length as long as head. Long sloping forehead leads to rounded crown ... M. (Oct.-Jun.) blackish overall, bill orange and white with black side spot ...." (Donald & Lillian Stokes's The Stokes Field Guide to the Birds of North America, p. 43)

Lockwood & Freeman (p. 11-12) note that the Surf Scoter is a "Rare migrant and winter visitor over most of the state and uncommon and local winter resident along the upper and central coasts. Surf Scoter is the most frequently encountered scoter species in Texas ... Migrants are most frequently encountered from late October to early December and mid-March to late April."

Photo taken with a Nikon D300 using a manual focus Nikon 300mm f/4.5 lens.

March 14, 2015.