MALLARD

Mallards, because of their trusting nature, are found in urban environments all over the world.

Males are recognized by their uncrested glossy-green head and white neck ring.

Females are mottled brown with a whitish tail, a bill patched with orange and orange feet.

Mallards hybridize with Black Ducks, Pintails and domestic ducks. These “bib” ducks are seen frequently around Toronto.

AMERICAN BLACK DUCK

The American Black Duck is sooty brown with a paler head and metallic violet wing patch.

Males have a greenish-yellow bill.

Females have a dark-olive bill.

GADWALL

The male Gadwall is a gray duck with a black rump and a white patch on the rear edge of the wing.

The female is a mottled brown with a white wing patch, yellow feet and yellow on the bill.

COMMON PINTAIL

The male Pintail is a slender slim-necked, white-breasted duck with a needle-pointed tail.

The female is mottled brown with a rather pointed tail, slender neck and gray bill.

Here is a Mallard – Pintail hybrid.

AMERICAN WIGEON

The American Wigeon sits higher on the water than other ducks.

The male has a shining white crown and a gray head with deep green patch.

The female is brown with a gray head and neck and a dark smudge around the eye.

WOOD DUCK

The male Wood Duck is certainly one of the most beautiful creatures on earth.

Males have a highly ornate face pattern, swept back crest and rainbow iridescence.

Females are dull-coloured with a dark crested head and a white eye patch.

NORTHERN SHOVELER

Northern Shovelers are small ducks with spoon-shaped bills.

The male has much black and white with a rufous side.

The female is brown with a big bill.

GREEN-WINGED TEAL

The male Green-winged Teal is a small compact gray duck with a brown head and a green head patch.

The female is a small speckled duck with a green wing patch.

There was considerable excitement among Toronto birders when a European Teal appeared in January 2021and associated with 3 North American Green-wings.

BLUE-WINGED TEAL

The Blue-winged Teal is about half the size of a Mallard.

The male has a white facial crescent and large chalky blue patch on the forewing.

The female is brown and mottled.

PEKIN DUCK

The Pekin is an American breed of domestic duck, raised primarily for meat. It is a mallard derived from birds brought to the United States from China in the nineteenth century, and is now bred in many parts of the world. 

They occasionally escape and can be seen in local marshes.

While working as a naturalist on cruise ships in the Antarctic region, I came across a species of duck which eats meat and made this post.

A Carniverous Duck: the Yellow-billed Pintail | Miles Hearn

MAILBOX

Hi Miles:
We talked about the heavy load of walnuts and pinecones this year so I thought this may interest you:

https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.science.org%2Fcontent%2Farticle%2Fwhy-are-trees-dropping-so-many-nuts-climate-may-drive-erratic-masting&data=04%7C01%7C%7C91b0e235cb4844e2d2d408d9b07a914a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637734862733695911%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&sdata=nlpr6wvl4DmW%2BavdPFan2sE%2F7Mfq8zhr8gaJi4LxGdM%3D&reserved=0

NATURE POETRY

In May-time, when the lilac-plumes
Droop from the branch their purple blooms;
When chestnuts clap their leafy hands,
And every bud with joy expands;
When in the moist, sequester’d nooks
Of woods is heard the call of brooks,
The wood-duck builds its downy nest
Secure from prowling schoolboy’s quest. -McClellan

Miles Hearn