LOS ANGELES — Miguel Lizarraga is an IT specialist who works out of his East Los Angeles home.
He often takes breaks in the afternoon to go fishing at nearby Belvedere Park Lake.
“I find solitude here, in the middle of a busy metropolis that is LA,” said Lizarraga, strolling next to the lake with his fishing pole.
Lizarraga explained that he's used to seeing all kinds of waterfowl floating on this small artificial lake: mallards, mergansers, coots and teals, among other species. He said he can identify them because he’s an avid outdoorsman and sport fisherman.
"There are ducks here that we call 'residents' because they never leave."
But one day, last October, Lizarraga saw a bird of a different feather. And he said the strange duck has been hanging out in this concrete pond ever since.
“He stands out,” said Lizarraga.
He posted pictures and video of the odd duck on social media. Soon, birdwatchers from all over Southern California flocked to East LA on a wild goose chase in search of a technicolor duck.
“It’s very vibrant,” said Lizarraga. “The color is absolutely amazing. Most people who have seen my pictures think it’s a wooden decoy that somebody painted.”
The red, white, green, purple, orange and black male duck seen in Lizarraga’s pictures is a rare Mandarin duck.
Lois Brunet, executive director of the Pasadena Audubon Society, said the species also awed her.
"The Mandarin duck looks like it was drawn by an artist, and by a good artist who spent a lot of time thinking about which colors could be combined in the most gracious way," Brunet said.
But the Mandarin Duck is species that is native to East Asia, not East LA. So, how on earth did this duck land halfway around the earth?
Brunet said the answer is simple.
“(This bird) was captured, and it was sold to people,” said Brunet. “And then (it) escaped.”
Brunet said the birds are exported and kept as pets. This particular duck is sought for its uncommon beauty, among other reasons.
“They are a deep and profound symbol of romantic love and devotion,” added Brunet. “And that is also why people collect them.”
Only a few thousand Mandarin ducks exist in the wild, mainly in eastern China and Japan. That small population makes the ducks rare to begin with. Even so, Brunet said it is not uncommon to see a Mandarin duck in Southern California.
"When I look back at my sightings around LA County, I would say, 'I see maybe one a year,'" said Brunet.
In October 2018, a male Mandarin duck made quite a splash in New York’s Central Park. News media covered the sighting, and a children’s book was published about the bird.
Back in East LA, Lizarraga says Belvedere’s resident Mandarin duck has also been very popular, not just among bird watchers, but also with children who come to see “Mr. Belvedere.”
"That’s the nickname that we’ve given him here."