Waterfowl Identification

Identifying waterfowl gives many hours of enjoyment to millions of people. This guide will help you recognize birds on the wing – it emphasizes their fall and winter plumage patterns as well as size, shape, and flightcharacteristics. It does not include local names. Recognizing the species of ducks and geese can be rewarding to birdwatchers and hunters – and the ducks. Hunters can contribute to their own sport by not firing at those species that are either protected or scarce, and needed as breeders to restore the flocks. It can add to their daily limit; when extra birds of certain species can be taken legally, hunters who know their ducks on the wing come out ahead. Knowing a mallard from a merganser has another side: gourmets prefer a corn-fed mallard to the fish duck.

What to Look For
Differences in size, shape, plumage patterns and colors, wing beat, flocking behavior, voice, and habitat – all help to distinguish one species from another.

Flock maneuvers in the air are clues. Mallards, pintails, and wigeon form loose groups; teal and shovelers flash by in small, compact bunches; at a distance canvasbacks shift from waving lines to temporary V’s.

Closer up, individual silhouettes are important. Variations of head shapes and sizes, lengths of wings and tails, and fat bodies or slim can be seen.

Within shotgun range, color areas can be important. Light conditions might make them look different, but their size and location are positive keys.

The sound of their wings can help as much as their calls. Flying goldeneyes make a whistling sound; wood ducks move with a swish; canvasbacks make a steady rushing sound. Not all ducks quack; many whistle, squeal, or grunt.

Although not a hard and fast rule, different species tend to use different types of habitat. Puddle ducks like shallow marshes and creeks while divers prefer larger, deeper, and more open waters.

Eclipse Plumage
Most ducks shed their body feathers twice each year. Nearly all drakes lose their bright plumage after mating, and for a few weeks resemble females. This hen-like appearance is called the eclipse plumage. The return to breeding coloration varies in species and individuals of each species. Blue-winged teal and shovelers may retain the eclipse plumage until well into the winter. Wing feathers are shed only once a year; wing colors are always the same.

Puddle Ducks
Puddle ducks are typically birds of fresh, shallow marshes and rivers rather than of large lakes and bays. They are good divers, but usually feed by dabbling or tipping rather than submerging. The speculum, or colored wing patch, is generally irridescent and bright, and often a telltale field mark. Any duck feeding in croplands will likely be a puddle duck, for most of this group are sure-footed and can walk and run well on land. Their diet is mostly vegetable, and grain-fed mallards or pintails or acorn-fattened wood ducks are highly regarded as food.

Mallard
The mallard is our most common duck, found in all flyways. The males are often called “greenheads.” The main wintering area is the lower Mississippi basin, and along the gulf coast, but many stay as far north as open water permits. Flocks often feed in early morning and late afternoon in nearby harvested fields, returning to marshes and creeks to spend the night. The flight is not particularly rapid. Hens have a loudquack; the drake’s voice is a low-pitched kwek-kwek.

Pintail
These ducks use all four flyways, but are most plentiful in the west. They are extremely graceful and fast fliers, fond of zig-zagging from great heights before leveling off to land. The long neck and tail make them appear longer than mallards, but in body size and weight they are smaller. They are agile on land and often feed in grain fields. The drakes whistle; the hens have a coarse quack.

Gadwall
Gadwalls are most numerous in the Central Flyway, but not too common anywhere. They are often called “gray mallards” or “gray ducks.” They are one of the earliest migrants, seldom facing cold weather. They are the only puddle ducks with a white speculum. Small, compact flocks fly swiftly, usually in a direct line. Wingbeats are rapid. Drakes whistle and kack-kack; hens quack like a mallard, but softer.

Wigeon
These are nervous birds, quick to take alarm. Their flight is fast, irregular, with many twists and turns. In a bunched flock, their movements have been compared to those of pigeons. When open water is handy, wigeon often raft up offshore until late afternoon when they move to marshes and ponds to feed. The white belly and forewing are very showy in the air. Drakes whistle; hens have a loud kaow and a lower qua-awk.

Shoveler
Shovelers, ‘spoonbills’ to many, are early migrants, moving out at the first frost. The largest numbers are in the Central and Pacific flyways. The usual flight is steady and direct. When startled, the small flocks twist and turn in the air like teal. They are not highly regarded as table birds, because one third of the usual diet is animal matter. Drakes call woh-woh and took-took; the hen’s quack is feeble.

Blue-Winged Teal
Their small size and twisting turning flight gives the illusion of great speed. The small, compact flocks commonly fly low over the marshes, and often take the hunter by suprise. They are more vocal than most ducks – their high-pitched peeping and nasal quacking is commonly heard in spring and to a lesser extent in fall. These teal are among the first ducks to migrate each fall, and one of the last in the spring.

Cinnamon Teal
In the Pacific Flyway, cinnamon teal are far more common than blue-wings. The hens look alike and the habits of both species are similar. The pale blue forewing patch is the best field mark, as drakes are usually in eclipse until January or longer. Drakes have a whistling peep; hens utter a low quack.

Green-Winged Teal
Quite hardy – some birds stay as far north as open water is found. The smallest and one of the most common of our ducks. Their tiny size gives the impression of great speed, but mallards can fly faster. Their flight is often low, erratic, with the entire flock twisting and turning as one unit. They nest as far north as Alaska, and migrate in all four flyways. Early fall drakes are usually still in full eclipse plumage. Drakes whistle and twitter; hens have a slight quack.

Wood Duck
Found in all flyways; most numerous in the Atlantic and Mississippi flyways and fewest in the Central. They are early migrants; most of them have left the northern states by mid-November. Frequents wooded streams and ponds; perches in trees. Flies through thick timber with speed and ease and often feeds on acorns, berries, and grapes on the forest floors. Flight is swift and direct; flocks are usually small. In the air, their wings make a rustling, swishing sound. Drakes call hoo-w-ett, often in flight; hens have a cr-r-ek when frightened.

Black Duck
A bird of the eastern states, primarily the Atlantic Flyway and, to a lesser extent, the Mississippi. Shy and wary, regarded as the wariest of all ducks. Often seen in company of mallards, but along the Atlantic coast frequents the salt marshes and ocean much more than mallards. Flight is swift, usually in small flocks. White wing lining in contrast to very dark body plumage is a good identification clue. The hen’s quack and the drake’s kwek-kwek are duplicates of the mallards.

Diving Ducks
Diving ducks frequent the larger, deeper lakes and rivers, and coastal bays and inlets. The colored wing patches of these birds lack the brilliance of the speculums of puddle ducks. Since many of them have short tails, their huge, paddle feet may be used as rudders in flight, and are often visible on flying birds. When launching into flight, most of this group patter along the water before becoming airborne. They feed by diving, often to considerable depths. To escape danger, they can travel great distances underwater, emerging only enough to show their head before submerging again. Their diets of fish, shellfish, mollusks, and aquatic plants make them second choice, as a group, for sportsmen. Canvasbacks and redheads fattened on eel grass or wild celery are notable exceptions. Since their wings are smaller in proportion to the size and weight of their bodies, they have a more rapid wingbeat than puddle ducks.

Canvasback
Normally late to start south, canvasbacks migrate in lines and irregular V’s. In feeding areas, compact flocks fly in indefinite formations. Their wingbeat is rapid and noisy; their speed is the swiftest of all our ducks. Feeding behavior is highly variable. In some areas they feed at night and spend the day rafted up in open waters; in other areas they feed inshore mornings and evenings. On the water, body size and head shape distinguish them from scaups and redheads. Drakes croak, peep, and growl; hens have a mallard-likequack.

Redhead
Range coast to coast, with the largest numbers in the Central Flyway. Migratory flocks travel in V’s; move in irregular formations over feeding areas. Often found associating with canvasback. In the air, they give the impression of always being in a hurry. Usually spend the day in large rafts in deep water; feed morning and evening in shallower sections. Drakes purr and meow; hens have a loud squak, higher than a hen mallard’s.

Ring-Necked Duck
Similar in appearance to scaups, but more often found in fresh marshes and wooded ponds. In flight, the dark wings are different from the white-edged wings of scaup. Faint brown ring on drake’s neck never shows in the field; light bands at tip and base of bill are conspicuous. Fly as small flocks in open formation; often land without circling. Drakes purr; hens are usually silent.

Lesser Scaup
Except for the wing marks, greater and lesser scaup appear nearly identical in the field. The light band near the trailing edges of the wings runs almost to the tip in the greater scaup, but only about half way in the lesser. Greater scaup prefer large open water areas; lesser scaup often use marshes and ponds. Both species migrate late, sometimes just before freezeup. Flock movements are rapid, often erratic, usually in compact groups. Hens are silent; drake lesser scaup purr; drake greater scaup have a discordant scaup, scaup.

Goldeneye
These are active, strong-winged fliers moving singly or in small flocks, often high in the air. Distinctive wing-whistling sound in flight has earned the name of whistlers. Goldeneyes generally move south late in the season; most of them winter on coastal waters and the Great Lakes. Inland, they like rapids and fast water. Barrow’s goldeneye, predominantly a westerner, is less wary than the common goldeneye. Hens of both species are look-alikes. Drakes have a piercing speer-speer - hens a low quack. Both are usually quiet.

Bufflehead
Stragglers migrate south in mid-fall, but the largest numbers move just ahead of freezeup. Most flocks in feeding areas are small – 5 or 6 birds, with more hens and immatures than adult drakes. Very small size, bold black and white color pattern and low, swift flight are field marks. Unlike most divers, they can fly straight up from a watery takeoff. Largest concentrations are on both seacoasts and along the Gulf of Mexico. Inland, they will remain as far north as open water permits. Usually silent. Drakes squeak and have a guttural note; hens quack weakly.

Ruddy Duck
The ruddy duck often dives or swims away from danger rather than flying. When flying, their small wings stroke so fast they resemble bumblebees. They are early to mid-fall migrants. Drakes often cock their tails upright at an angle, the only species to habitually do so. Both hens and drakes are silent in the fall.

Red-Breasted Merganser
These birds winter most abundantly in coastal waters, including the Gulf of Mexico, and to a lesser extent, the Great Lakes. Their flight, strong and direct, is usually low over the water. They are difficult to distinguish in flight from the common merganser. Voice: Seldom heard.

Common Merganser
This species is larger than the red-breasted merganser, and is one of the largest of our ducks. It is one of the last to migrate south, and is more common than the red-breasted merganser on inland waters. Flocks move in “follow the leader” style, low over the water. The only call seems to be a startled croak.



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