Blue-winged teal
Blue-winged teal (Anas discors)
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Blue-winged teal, like other teal are the half-pints of the duck world and are true world travelers.
Appearance:
About half the size of a mallard, the blue-winged teal are easily recognized by their grey-blue shoulder patch and by the male's white head-crescent and flank patch. The female is drab and mottled brown and her wing patch is subdued with an almost black-green speculum and no white border. Male's bill is blue-black and the female's is dusky with black spots.
Breeding:
Blue-wing teal breed from Alaska to Nova Scotia. They establish pairs on wintering grounds and during spring migration. Lays an average of 10 eggs and adds down feathers from her breast to aid in incubation, which lasts 24 days. Ducklings fledge between 35 and 44 days.
Habitat:
Grasslands bordering small potholes and other freshwater wetlands.
Range:
Coast-to-coast though most breed in prairie and parkland. Winters as far south as Peru.
Diet:
Changes dramatically with the seasons. Mainly plant matter and invertebrates for females during breeding.
Status and conservation issues:
Ranking fourth in numbers among North American ducks, surveys show they have been on the decline since the 1950s. From a high of more than 5 million, they have dropped as low as 3 million or less in recent years.
Blue-winged teal populations seem highly sensitive to drought, but undoubtedly their greatest problem remains the removal of their habitat and its conversion by humans to other uses such as agriculture, suburban expansion and road-building.
