200 



RIVER AND POND DUCKS 



Not to be confused with any other duck except the female European Teal, 

 from which it cannot be told with certainty. The tips of the greater coverts are 

 usually a deeper buff in this species than in the female European Teal; in which 

 they are very pale, almost white, while in the Green-wing they are brownish buff, 

 the outer ones paler. 



FIELD MARKS 



ON THE WATER. The Green-winged Teals are the smallest of our ducks. 

 Their small size will distinguish them from all except the other Teals and the 



little Buffle-heads. Both males and females 

 appear shorter of body than Bluewings and 

 have shorter necks. Size alone, however, is 

 a poor means of identification unless small 

 and larger birds are in mixed flocks. At 

 close range the dark brown head of the 

 male and the vertical, white crescent in 

 front of fold r ed n S will identify. Green- 



often fl be se ^ en lo f n on sand - 

 bars and mud flats, where they sit preen- 



Green-winged Teals in background. 

 Male European Teal in foreground. 



ing their feathers and sunning themselves. The bright blue wingpatches of the 

 Blue-winged Teal, the red colour of the Cinnamon Teal, and the conspicuous black 

 and white markings of the Buffle-head will separate these other small ducks. The 

 seldom-encountered European Teal is identical except that the male lacks the white 

 crescent in front of the wing and shows 

 instead a prominent, horizontal white line 

 along side of the back above folded wing. 



IN FLIGHT. The flight is exceedingly 

 rapid, in large, compact flocks, wheeling 

 and circling like a dense flock of pigeons. 

 By their erratic flight and small body size 

 they may be told on the wing. The wings 

 make an audible whistling sound in flight. 

 When flushed from ground or water, they 

 spring vertically upward to a considerable 

 height before levelling off. In poor light, when the blue wing-patch of the Blue- 

 winged Teal cannot be observed, it is not possible to separate the two species. 



VOICE. Male, a short, mellow whistle or twittering call; a high-pitched, short, 

 staccato whistle, sometimes accompanied by a lower-pitched, trilled note; a note 

 like that of a spring peeper frog. Female, a high-pitched, off-repeated quack of 

 slight volume; when surprised, kup-kup-kup; when curious, ek-ek-ek. Courtship 

 voice of the male is a soft, not unmusical, pheep pheep. 



LIFE STORY 



The drake Green-winged Teal, in the eyes of many, ranks second 

 only in charm and beauty to the gorgeous Wood Duck. A wealth of deli- 

 cate loveliness is blended on the tiny person of this, the smallest of our 

 wild fowl. 



"Following close on the heels of the Pintail and the Mallard, the 

 hardy little Green-winged Teal is one of the earliest migrants to start in 

 the spring for its northern breeding grounds. It begins to leave its win- 



