Falcated duck

Characteristics

This duck is characterized by the male's colorful head.

The male's beak, forehead, and cheeks are reddish purple, and the back of the head is shiny green. The body is gray with white spots. There is a black ring around the neck, and the throat is white. The tertiary flight feathers are softly curved, like ornamental feathers.

The female is a dull brown color overall, and is a little smaller than the male.

Ecology

They fly to Japan as winter birds and spend their time in rivers, lakes, and marshes.

They are plant-colored, and eat aquatic plants and plant seeds near the water surface.

Habitat

Tama River Kamikawahara Dam

I photographed an individual in the pool of the Kamikawahara Dam at the end of March. It was swimming far from the shore, but then flew off and landed relatively close to the shore. They seemed to be feeding while swimming on the surface of the water in pairs.

I wanted to photograph it closer on a sunny day, so I decided to try again next season.