Tufted Duck

Tufted Duck - Diving ducks
The Tufted Duck is a small diving duck. The adult male is all black except for white flanks and a blue-grey bill. It has an obvious head tuft that gives the species its name. The adult female is brown with paler flanks and is more easily confused with other diving ducks. In particular, some have white around the bill base which resembles the Scaup although the white is never as extensive as in that species.

The Tufted Duck breeds widely throughout temperate and northern Eurasia. It occasionally can be found as a winter visitor along both coasts of the United States and Canada. It is migratory in most of its range and winters in the milder south and west of Europe and southern Asia where large flocks form on open water. The Tufted Duck breeds close to marshes and lakes with plenty of vegetation to conceal the nest. It is also found on coastal lagoons and sheltered ponds.

The Tufted Duck feeds mainly by diving for molluscs, aquatic insects and aquatic plants.

Date: 5th January 2017

Location: WWT London Wetland Centre, Barnes, Greater London

Tufted Duck

Return to: Diving ducks or Ducks or Gallery

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