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American Wigeonby pgish on April 30, 2008
American Wigeonby Joanne_B on April 29, 2008
American Wigeonby relwo on February 27, 2008
American Wigeonby hoetmer on January 19, 2008
American Wigeonby flighty on January 12, 2008
American Wigeon
The American Wigeon (sometimes spelled Widgeon) or Baldpate (Anas americana) is a common and widespread duck which breeds in the northernmost areas of North America: in Canada in Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Alaska, and the Northwest Territories and the Great Lakes. It is the New World counterpart of the European Wigeon.
This dabbling duck is strongly migratory and winters further south than its breeding range as south as in Texas and Louisiana coast of the Gulf of Mexico. It is a rare but regular vagrant to western Europe. It is highly gregarious outside of the breeding season and will form large flocks.
The breeding male has pinkish flanks and breast back, with a black rear end and a brilliant white speculum, obvious in flight or at rest. It has a greyish head with a green eye patch and a whitish crown stripe. It is 18-23" long.
In non-breeding (eclipse) plumage, the drake looks more like the female.
It is a bird of open wetlands, such as wet grassland or marshes with some taller vegetation, and usually feeds by dabbling for plant food or grazing, which it does very readily. It nests on the ground, near water and under cover. It lays 6-12 creamy white eggs.
This is a noisy species. The male has a clear whistle in three syllables: whoee-whoe-whoe, whereas the female has a low growl qua-ack.
{{Commonscat|Anas americana}}