Welcome to the forum Pkorner and I couldn't agree with you more - the Hooded Merganser is my favourite duck too and you got a really nice shot of a very good looking male.
At last, it wasn't raining and in fact the sun was peeking in and out so I headed off to the pier at White Rock. There were lots of birds at high tide so I was really pleased with the outing (it's supposed to be nice tomorrow too).
Eared Grebe by
Jewill on Flickr
Bufflehead (Male & Female) by
Jewill on Flickr
Yes, it's still my "thing" to get the male and female in the same shot.
White-winged & Surf Scoter (Male) by
Jewill on Flickr
Long-tailed Duck (Male - Juvenile) by
Jewill on Flickr
This is not a very good shot so if someone gets a better one by all means please post it.
Meanwhile, back at home...
Pileated Woodpecker (Male) by
Jewill on Flickr
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-coloured - Male) by
Jewill on Flickr