Redhead (duck)
| Redhead | |
|---|---|
 | |
| male | |
 | |
| female with young | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Anseriformes |
| Family: | Anatidae |
| Subfamily: | Aythyinae |
| Genus: | Aythya |
| Species: | A. americana |
| Binomial name | |
| Aythya americana (Eyton, 1838) | |
The Redhead (Aythya americana) is a medium-sized diving duck, 37 cm long with an 84 cm wingspan.
The adult male has a blue bill, a red head and neck, a black breast, yellow eyes and a grey back. The adult female has a brown head and body and a darker bluish bill with a black tip.
The breeding habitat is marshes and prairie potholes in western North America. Loss of nesting habitat has led to sharply declining populations. Females regularly lay eggs in the nests of other Redheads or other ducks, especially Canvasbacks. Redheads usually take new mates each year, starting to pair in late winter.
Following the breeding season, males go through a molt which leaves them flightless for almost a month. Before this happens, they leave their mates and move to large bodies of water, usually flying further north.
They overwinter in the southern and north-eastern United States, the Great Lakes region, northern Mexico and the Caribbean.
This strong migrant is a very rare vagrant to western Europe.
Feeding habits
These birds feed mainly by diving or dabbling. They mainly eat aquatic plants Halodule wrightii(74 %) with some molluscs (21 %).Gastropods include 18% of food and bivalves include 3 % of its food.
Gastropods known as food of Aythya americana include: Acteocina canaliculata, Acteon punctostriatus, Anachis avara, Anachis obesa, Caecum nitidum, Calliostoma sp., Cerithidea pliculosa, Cerithium lutosum, Crepidula convexa, Diastoma varium, Melanella sp., Mitrella lunata,Nassarius acutus, Nassarius vibex, Natica sp., Neritina virginea, Odostomia trifida, Olivella minuta,Olivella watermani, Polinices sp., Pyramidellidae, Pyrgocythara plicosa, Rissoina catesbyana,Sayella livida, Turbonilla sp., Turbonilla interrupta and Vitrinella sp.
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