1. Diving Ducks
By Carissa & Paige

2. Characteristics of Diving Ducks
Legs closer to rear of body
Dive up to 40' in depth
Feed in deeper water
Less colorful
Take flight by using their feet

3. The Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensi)
When alarmed, ruddy ducks dive underwater rather than flying away
Holds tail stiffly erect
Chunky body
Stubby wings

4. Ruddy Duck Hen
Even though they are small, ruddy ducks lay some of the largest eggs of any duck in the world
Bill is identical
Pondweeds, algae,
seeds of sedges and grasses,
aquatic insects
shellfish and crustaceans
Grayish-brown with a single horizontal stripe

5. Ruddy Duck Drake Rusty-brown back, rump, neck, chest, and sides
Blue beak
Show breeding colors in the spring
Travel at night

6. Juvenile Ruddy Duck Two years of age Eight eggs
Construct nests in cattail
Feed on invertebrates
Juvenile Ruddy Duck

7. Canvasback (Aythya valisineria)
One of the largest ducks
Uses bill to dig in a lake or river bottom for food
Base and roots of plants, mollusks and insects

8. Canvasback Drake Males: 21“ and 2.7 lbs.
Rust colored head and neck with red eyes
Breast and rear are black
Back and sides grayish-white
Several males usually court one female

9. Canvasback Hen Females: 20“ and 2.5 lbs.
Mottled gray with a brown head, neck and rump
Belly is white
and eyes are brown
Pairing begins late winter or during migration in early spring

10. Juvenile Canvasback Begin nest building mid-May
Basket and is made of dead vegetation, dried reeds and lined with down
One brood per year
Seven to twelve eggs

11. Redhead (Aythya americana)
Small fish, mollusks, pondweeds, wild celery, and water lilies
Most common breeders in the United States
Medium sized duck

12. Redhead Drake 20“ and 2.4 lbs. Bright red head,
black neck, a gray back and a white belly
Bill is light blue-gray with a whitish band behind a relatively wide black tip
Resembles the "meow" of a cat

13. Redhead Hen 19“ and 2.51lbs. Uniformly brown in color
Bill is duller than the male's, but similar in pattern
The legs and feet are gray
Redhead Hen

14. Juvenile Redhead Ten to fourteen eggs
Uses grasses and other plants to build a nest
Form pairs in April

15. Greater Scaup (Aythya marila)
Greater and Lesser Scaup are often found together
Relatively silent

16. Greater Scaup Hen 17" and 2.15 lbs.
Brown with white oval patches around their bills
Bill is similar to males
Eyes are yellow
Harsh, gruff notes

17. Greater Scaup Drake 18.6" and 2.32 lbs. Glossy black head tinted green
Neck, breast and upper mantle are glossy black, and belly is white
Wing has a broad white stripe
Bill is a light blue-gray with a black nail

18. Juvenile Greater Scaup
Average of nine eggs
Three-quarters of the North American population breeds in Alaska
Nest on islands in large lakes

19. Works Cited
Bellrose, F.C Ducks, geese and swans of North America, 2nd edition. Stackpole Books, Pennsylvania.
Hochbaum, H.A The Canvasback on a Prairie Marsh. University of Nebraska Press.
Mowbray, T.B Canvasback (Aythya valisineria). In The Birds of North America, No. 659 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.
Brua, R Ruddy Duck Nesting Success: Do Nest Characteristics Deter Nest Predation?. The Condor, 101/4: Accessed October 19, 2007 at .
Gooders, J., T. Boyer Ducks of North America and the Northern Hemisphere. New York: Facts On File, Inc..
Hohman, W., C. Ankney, D. Roster Body Condition, Food Habits, and Molt Status of Late-Wintering Ruddy Ducks in California. The Southwestern Naturalist, 37(3):

20. Works Cited Continued
Jehl, J., E. Johnson Wing and Tail Molts of the Ruddy Duck. Waterbirds, 27(1):
Joyner, D Behavior of Ruddy Duck Broods in Utah. The Auk, 94:
Korschgen, C., L. George, W. Green Disturbance of Diving Ducks by Boaters on a Migrational Staging Area. Wildlife Society Bulletin, 13(3):
Kortright, F The Ducks, Geese, and Swans of North American. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: The Stackpole Company.
Matthias, D Helminths of Some Waterfowl from Western Nevada and Northeastern California. The Journal of Parasitology, 49/1: 155.
Munoz-Fuentes, V., A. Green, M. Sorenson, J. Negro The ruddy duck Oxyura jamaicensis in Europe: natural colonization or human introduction?. Molecular Ecology, 15: