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Ducks: The Dabblers |
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Wherever there's water, be it a lake, inlet, pond or wetland there's probably
going to be a duck or two close by. |
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Ducks may come in many shapes, sizes and colours, but they fall into only two groups based on how they search for food: the dabblers and the divers. The dabblers include mallards, wigeons and pintails while the divers consist of scaups, goldeneyes and buffleheads. |
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Although some dabblers are capable of diving for food, most of their feeding is done like this female Mallard. They simply tip their heads into the water and look for something to eat.
The best design for dabbling is to have legs near the centre of the body to act as a pivot. This structure makes it easy for dabblers to tip up to feed on the plants and organisms just under the water's surface. |
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The Mallard, Anas platyrhynchos, is perhaps one of the most recognizable of all ducks. Because of its migration, it is found across North America, Asia and Europe and parts of Australasia at various times of the year. The male, or drake, is shown above with its bright iridescent green head and yellow bill.
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Like many female ducks, the female mallard lacks the colourfulness of the males. This ensures that she is not too too conspicuous when nesting. |
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Dabblers are well adapted with their legs positioned to make tipping easy. They are also capable of an almost vertical take off and don't have to run across the water. They are also strong walkers and manage to walk on land quite easily. |
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The male Northern Pintail, Anas acuta, has distinctive brown, gray and white markings and a long tail. As its name suggests, it is found across the northern parts of North American, Europe and Asia. Most migrate south to over winter in the warmer parts but some from the prairies will migrate to the west coast and spend the winter months there. |
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With their long tails, Northern Pintails are fairly large ducks (64-76 cm/25-30 in long). The female, shown above, is much shorter as she lacks the long tail. |
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With their wide, spatula-shaped bills, Northern Shovelers, Anas clypeata, are very distinctive. The colourful male is on the left and the female on the right. These ducks prefer shallow water and use their bills to scoop up mud and strain out small invertebrates. Like Mallards, Northern Shovelers migrate great distances and can be found throughout the Northern Hemisphere at various times of the year. |
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The Eurasian Wigeon, Anas penelope, is adept at munching on short grasses, as shown here in the photo on the right. It prefers not to mingle with other species and is most often found in small groups. As the name suggests, this duck hails from Europe and Asia, but is sometimes found along the coasts of North America. |
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The American Wigeon, Anas americana, is much more common and found across North America. It is a vegetarian dabbler and enjoys marshes and wetlands with tall vegetation in which it can hide, since it's quite a wary duck and easily frightened. When not dabbling it will graze on the shore or in fields eating stems, grass and leaves. |
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American Wigeons nest on the ground near water, often on islands. They are also noted for stealing grasses and plants from diving ducks. The female is shown here on the left, and the male with its characterized white markings and dark eye patch is on the right. |
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The male Green-winged Teal, Anas creeca, is another beautifully marked dabbling duck, with its reddish-brown head, green eye stripe and spotted breast. It is the smallest of North America's dabblers, but is a fast flier capable of 70 km/h (40 mph). |
Male Gadwals, Anas strepera, (top right) lack the colourful plumage that most ducks have but is still a handsome bird with its gray body, black rear and brown back, neck and head.
The female (bottom right) has orange on the side of her bill and is generally mottled brown in colour.
Gadwels are dabblers that occasionally dive for tadpoles, small fish and invertebrates. Otherwise they feed on water plants or graze in fields during migration.
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