Green-Winged Teal Duck - Duck Hunting - Wetland Hunting

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Green-Winged Teal Duck

 

Description

Green-winged Teal ducks are small birds with short, blocky bodies. They have a large head, a short neck, and a relatively small bill. While in water, their tails are visibly seen high out of the water. With both sexes having a length range of 31 to 39 cm and weigh between 140 and 500 g, these ducks have 52 – 59 cm wingspan.

The American breeding male ducks have a chestnut head and a green streak behind the eye. When standing or feeding, you can see a vertical white stripe on the side. Eurasian males, on the other hand, have a horizontal stripe (on the side) instead of a vertical stripe that's found in the American species. Females and immature males have a stripe at the back that's cream-colored. This is one of the ways you can differentiate between breeding males from females and immature/non-breeding males. However, both sexes have green wing patches in the speculum although the patches might be hidden when they are not flying.

Habitat
These game birds can be found in rivers, marshes, and bays. In summer, ideal habitats are open areas near shallow freshwater marshes and lakes. However, when migrating or in winter, these game birds prefer inhabiting tidal marshes, shallow lakes, inland ponds, and coastal estuaries. It seems like these birds prefer wetlands with either standing or floating vegetation.

Diet
These game birds feed on plant materials like pondweeds, sedges, and seeds of grasses although the type of food varies depending on season and location. Tadpoles, mollusks, aquatic insects, fish eggs, aquatic insects and earthworms also comprise the diet. The Green-winged Teal ducks rely on the animal matter in summer and seeds during the winter season. As dabbling ducks, these game birds forage by swimming or wading in shallow water. They use their bills to filter and look for aquatic plants or insects. When standing in flooded fields, puddles or wetlands, the Green-winged Teal ducks just bend to pick food items.

Nesting
Males attract potential mating females via courtship displays. The male can rear out of the water, arch his head forward and then down while rapidly shaking the bill in the water. Later, the male gives a sharp whistle as a sign of maturity and dominance.

The nest is built amongst tall grasses and weeds although the nest site can be in an open woodland provided there is a source of water within 200'. The females use grasses, twigs, and leaves to cover a shallow depression. Thick grass or vegetation provides much-needed cover for protection.

Eggs
Female ducks lay 6 to 11 eggs that are cream to pale buff although some females are capable of laying 15 or 18 eggs! Females incubate the eggs for 20 to 24 days although the incubation period is usually 3 weeks/21 days. A few hours after hatching, the ducklings leave the nest. Both males and females tend to their ducklings for a few weeks as they teach them how to look for food and water. The young fledge after 35 days.


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