| White-headed Duck | |
|---|---|
 Male in Basic Plumage | |
 Female | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Anseriformes |
| Family: | Anatidae |
| Genus: | Oxyura |
| Species: | Oxyura leucocephala |
The White-headed Duck (Oxyura leucocephala) is a stifftail duck of the wetlands of Spain, North Africa and Western Asia. Listed as Endangered, efforts are being made to introduce it to Europe.
Description[]
The White-necked Duck is a compact-bodied diving duck with a large head, short neck, and a relatively long, stiff tail. Males and females look alike outside of breeding season, both sporting russet plumage with streaks of white on the cheeks. Their wings are grey with white axillaries. Males are generally larger than female: males 474 mm, females 438 mm, mean mass: males 717 g, females 657 g. During breeding seasons, males have a white head with a black cap and tail and their beak becomes swollen at the base. Breeding males in Alternate Plumage have a blue bill while breeding males in Basic Plumage have slate-grey bills.
Fossil History[]
Fossils of the White-headed Duck have been found at “Elephas mnaidriensis Faunal Complex” deposits of the island of Sicily (Italy) which date to the late Middle Pleistocene to the early Late Pleistocene. Older White-headed Duck fossils have been dated to Early to Late Holocene deposit at Sozopol in coastal Bulgaria. Burning traces were found in a deposit at Grotta Romanelli (dated 11,930 ± 520 and 9,980 ± 100 years before present), suggesting human consumption.
Habitat[]
Distribution of White-headed Duck provided by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
White-headed Ducks inhabit freshwater, alkaline, saline, and eutrophic lakes connected with larger wetland complexes. Alkaline lakes have a pH of 7.8 to 10 to prevent them from freezing. Their breeding sites contain dense vegetation and are small and shallow (0.5 to 3 meters deep). Their wintering sites are larger and deeper with less emergent vegetation.
Life History[]
Food Habits[]
The White-headed Duck dives for midge larvae and other aquatic invertebrates. Angiosperm seeds also make up a significant part of its diet. Its remains submerged for 5 to 7 seconds and dives again within seconds of resurfacing.
Behavior[]
Asian populations are migratory, while populations in Spain and North Africa are non-migratory. White-headed Ducks undergo a flightless moulting period lasting for 2-3 weeks before their migration to their wintering grounds in August. They will arrive by September-October in massive flocks of up to 10,000. In February, ducks will journey to their breeding range and arrive by early May. White-headed Ducks are seasonally monogamous and aren't territorial. Their nests are a cupped platform of leaves and stems constructed over shallow water in emergent vegetation. Occasionally, they will build a roof by bending down overhead leaves. White-headed Ducks have also been observed using the old nests of coots or ducks and nest boxes where they will build a nest of twigs. Females lay 4 to 9 eggs, one per 1.5 days, the largest for any waterfowl relative to their body mass. The incubation period is 22 to 24 days and it takes 8 to 10 weeks for young to fledge. Females will reach sexual maturity at one year of age or later.
White-headed Ducks are reluctant to fly in the face of danger. Rather, they will swim away and stay in a head-up-tail-up alert posture. They are quite clumsy on land.
Predation[]
White-headed Ducks are preyed upon by gulls. Eggs are eaten by brown rats. Their nests may also be trampled by cattle. It is illegal to hunt them.
Communication[]
White-headed Ducks are usually quiet apart from a low rattling noise males make when displaying.
Conservation[]
The White-headed Duck is an endangered species numbering about 10,000 individuals.
Ruddy Duck male photographed by pierre martin.
Historically, White-headed Ducks have been extensively hunted for meat almost until extinction. The eggs were also harvested for human consumption. Subsistence hunting of this species still persists to this day. The introduction of carp into lagoons have reduced food availability for White-headed Ducks. Their main threat is the introduction of Ruddy Ducks from North America. Male Ruddy Ducks and hybrids are far more successful at reproducing with White-headed Duck females than male White-headed Ducks, thus jeopardizing the White-headed Duck as a distinct species. In 2005, a program was launched to eradicate Ruddy Ducks from the UK, reducing the population from 6,000 to 100 (2016). The White-headed Duck is also protected by law in many countries, with efforts in Spain leading to a large population increase.
Citations[]
Degenshein, Shari. “Oxyura Leucocephala (White-Headed
- Duck).” Animal Diversity Web, animaldiversity.org/accounts/Oxyura_leucocephala/. Accessed 15 Oct. 2023.
“Species Names in All Available Languages.” Identification - White-Headed Duck - Oxyura Leucocephala -
- Birds of the World, birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/whhduc1/cur/identification#fieldid. Accessed 15 Oct. 2023.
“White-Headed Duck (Oxyura Leucocephala).” White-Headed Duck (Oxyura Leucocephala) - Birdlife
- Species Factsheet, datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/white-headed-duck-oxyura-leucocephala/text. Accessed 21 Oct. 2023.
“White-Headed Duck.” British Waterfowl Association, 25 Oct. 2021,
- www.waterfowl.org.uk/wildfowl/stifftails-allies/white-headed-duck/.