On February 21, 1996, I received a telephone call late in the day from Jeff Sewell who said that a man named Sutherland had reported a pair of Harlequin Ducks on the creek at Sweetwater Creek State Park. The sighting was from the previous day. I immediately left the State Capitol and drove out I-20 to the park, hiking down the back trail to the spot below the old mill where the birds had been seen. To my amazement, there were two Harlequin Ducks on a large rock in the middle of Sweetwater Creek, which is a swift flowing stream reminiscent of the streams that Harlequin Ducks use during the nesting season before they return to the sea. I was able to get some record photos in the fading light. The birds were subsequently seen during their nine
day visit by numerous observers.

There are few records of Harlequin Duck for Georgia. The Annotated Checklist for Georgia Birds lists three sightings from Tybee Island, Georgia [18 Feb-10 Mar 1984 (Lane), 10 Mar 1985 and 23 Nov 1989 (Raney) ] in addition to the sighting at Sweetwater Creek.

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