Wood Duck

Description: Male wood ducks have iridescent green and purple feathers on their head and also have a white stripe that goes from their eyes to the back their head, with another white stripe that runs from their bill to the top of their head. They have a white neck and their chest feathers are chestnut with white specks that fade into a white stomach. Their bills is black, red, and white and they have yellow to orange feet and legs.

Female wood ducks have a grayish brown head and a brown neck, with green colored feathers on their chest. They have white feathers that surround their dark eyes. Their neck is white and their chest is grayish brown with dark specks. The chest also fades to white on their belly. Their backs are olive and brown with iridescent green hues. Their bill is bluish gray and their legs and feet are gray and yellow.

Breeding: Wood ducks will breed all over parts of central and eastern states of the US and southeast Canada. They breed along the Pacific coast from British Columbia down to California. The greatest breeding populations live in the Mississippi Valley areas. Recently, the areas for breeding have actually grown west into the Great Plains areas because of the increased growth of wooded forests. Wood ducks are given to living in forests and wooded swamps, marshes, and bogs. Females will make a nest in tree openings or enclosed box nests where she’ll lay about 12 eggs.

Migrating and Wintering: Wood ducks are actually permanent residents in many regions of the US. The wood ducks that do migrate use the Atlantic Flyway and move from New Brunswick down to Georgia, and also into regions of Texas. The birds that migrate in western states follow the Pacific Flyway moving from British Columbia down to the Central Valley of California. All populations will spend parts of winter in their respective breeding territories. The birds that live in the interior states of the US do not follow a dedicated migratory pattern, although the highest concentrations are found from Kentucky, southward following the Mississippi River. Most birds spend most of their wintering months in a habitat very similar to that which they inhabit during their warmer months. Wood ducks will live in forested wetlands that have hardwood trees growing in them.

Population: Most wood duck populations for much of North America are increasing as recent surveys suggest. The total population number is difficult to calculate because of the difficulty to count bird numbers in the wild.

Popularity: 2%