This duck is not very prominent from a distance. I originally thought it was a female Northern Shoveler, but Google Lens suggested it was a blue-winged teal. After referring to other photos, I realized that it is not a Northern Shoveler. “The adult male has a greyish blue head with a white facial crescent, a light brown body with a white patch near the rear and a black tail.” This is the description for male blue-winged teal.
這種鴨遠看並不怎麼突出，我原本以為它是雌的琵嘴鴨，等到 Google Lens 建議這是藍翅鴨。再參考其它照片，才知它不是琵嘴鴨。“成年雄性頭部呈灰藍色，面部新月形，淺褐色，後部附近有白色斑點，尾巴為黑色。” 這是雄性藍翅鴨的特徵。
Photo Date: 2021.01.05 Location: Peck Road Park, California
Notes 筆記
- Blue-winged teal is one of the smaller members of the dabbling duck group, it occurs in North America. Its scientific name Spatula is the Latin for a “spoon” or “spatula”. The specific epithet discors is the Latin for “different” or “at variance”.
- Blue-winged Teal are the second most abundant duck in North America, behind the Mallard. They nest throughout much of the U.S. and Canada. It breed primarily in the northern prairies and parklands of central North America.
- Blue-winged Teal are long distance migrants, with some birds heading all the way to South America for the winter. It is among the latest ducks to migrate northward in spring, and one of the first to migrate southward in fall.
- Blue-winged teal inhabit shoreline more often than open water and prefer calm water or sluggish currents to fast water. They inhabit inland marshes, lakes, ponds, pools, and shallow streams with dense emergent vegetation. In coastal areas, breeding occurs in salt-marsh meadows with adjoining ponds or creeks.
- These birds feed by dabbling in shallow water at the edge of marshes or open water. They mainly eat plants; their diet may include mollusks and aquatic insects.
- The onset of courtship among immature blue-winged teal often starts in late January or early February. In areas south of the breeding grounds, blue-winged teal are more active in courtship during the spring migration than are most other ducks.
- Blue-winged teal are among the last dabbling ducks to nest. Females decide where to nest by flying over possible areas, landing in an opening, and then walking into grassy cover. She may take several days to decide on the site. Males wait nearby. Nests are typically at least a foot above the nearest water and covered by vegetation.
- 藍翅鴨是涉水鴨類中較小的鴨，它產於北美。它的學名中Spatula是拉丁語的“勺子”或“鍋鏟”的意思。種小名disorors是拉丁語，表示“不同”或“有差異”的意思。
- 藍翅鴨是僅次於綠頭鴨在北美第二多的鴨子。在美國和加拿大的大部分地區都築巢。它主要在北美中部的北部大草原和草原上繁殖。
- 藍翅鴨是長途遷徙的鴨子，有些會飛往南美過冬。它是春季向北遷移最早的鴨子之一，而秋季則是最早向南遷移的鴨子之一。
- 藍翅鴨比較常棲息在海岸線上而較少在開闊的水域，並且比較喜歡靜水或水流緩慢的地方而非水流急速之處。它們棲息於內陸沼澤、湖泊、池塘、水池和有茂密植物的淺流中。在沿海地區、在毗鄰池塘或小溪的鹽沼草地上繁殖。
- 這些鴨涉水在沼澤或開闊水域的邊緣淺水中來覓食。它們主要吃植物，它們也吃軟體動物和水生昆蟲。
- 發育未全的藍翅鴨通常在1月下旬或2月初開始求愛。在繁殖地以南的地區，春季遷徙期間，藍翅鴨比其他鴨更活躍的求愛。
- 藍翅鴨是最後一批築巢的鴨子。雌鴨飛越可能築巢的地區，降落在通道，然後走進草皮來決定巢的位置。她可能需要幾天時間才能決定地點。而雄鴨則在附近等候。巢通常被植物覆蓋著，並距離最近的水面至少一英尺的距離。
References 參考資料
- Wikipedia: Blue-winged teal
- All about birds: Blue-winged Teal
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