wordsfromanneli

Thoughts, ideas, photos, and stories.

Category Archives: Birds


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American Wigeon

I have been using the alternate spelling of “widgeon” for some time now, but apparently it is considered old-fashioned, so I’ll go back to the “wigeon” (like “pigeon”) spelling.

 

***** After reading several comments about the spelling of this bird, I’m thinking I should go back to spelling it with the “d,”  (widgeon). Oh, deardeardeardeardear. Whattodo?Whattodo?Whattodo?Whattodo?

The American wigeon (Mareca americana) likes small lakes, ponds, and marshes where it dabbles for plant and animal matter, but it also is often found in fields, yanking out small plants by the roots. Their short bills give them good leverage for this and they can decimate newly sprouted grain fields if they get in there to feed on the small shoots.

The drake wigeon has a distinctive green stripe on the side and back of his head, but it is the white feathers on top that give him the nickname “baldpate” (because he looks bald at a distance).

Mrs. Wigeon doesn’t mind him looking “bald.”

She says, “God only made so many beautiful heads; on all the others He put hair … er … feathers.”

I think they look quite cute together.

With a bit of shade on his side, Mr. Wigeon’s light rusty colours are more noticeable, and we can more easily see that his bill is a lighter slate blue than Mrs. Wigeon’s is, but both have a black tip on their bill.

Thank you, Sonia, for the photos.


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Wood Ducks

Wood ducks (Aix sponsa) are not only beautiful with their bright colours and design, but they have some interesting habits, too.

These two photos were taken by my friend Sonia from her visit to the George C. Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary near Delta, BC.  They are both of drake wood ducks. For a photo of female wood ducks, please click on the link to Belinda Grover’s blog near the end of this post.

 

Wood ducks are dabblers, taking their food from near the surface of the water. They also graze on land, eating seeds, berries, and acorns. When the acorns are in their gizzards, they are able to crush them to digest them further. My stomach hurts just thinking about it.

Wood ducks have sharp claws on their feet to help them cling to tree branches where they like to perch.

Who would think that a duck would make a nest up in a tree? But wood ducks do just that. Maybe it’s safer that way.

The day after the ducklings hatch, they are ready to leave the nest. The mother duck checks out the water or ground below the snag and when she feels it is safe, she calls to the ducklings who then, one by one, drop to the leafy ground or water, sometimes a drop of as much as fifty feet, and then swim after their mother. If they are not right by the water, they hustle after her as she leads them to the nearby water. Amazing, aren’t they?

I don’t have a photo of a female wood duck, but if you visit Belinda Grover’s blog, you can see them. Please check out her blog of excellent photography.

WOOD DUCK