Andean Duck
Oxyura ferruginea
Small, compact duck with a long, fan-shaped tail, often held sticking up out of water. Breeding males have a chestnut body, black head, and baby-blue bill. Nonbreeding males and females are variably brown overall, often with a smudgy dark face and a dark line through the cheek. Occurs in pairs or loose flocks, bobbing like corks on lakes in the Andes from central Colombia to southern Chile. Dives to forage on aquatic invertebrates. Not often seen flying.
Identification
These are small, compact ducks with stout, scoop-shaped bills, and long, stiff tails they often hold cocked upward. They have slightly peaked heads and fairly short, thick necks. In summer, they have rich chestnut bodies with bright blue bills. In winter, they are dull gray-brown above and paler below with dull gray bills. Females and first-year males are brownish, somewhat like winter males but with a blurry stripe across the pale cheek patch. It is separable from the ruddy duck by its all-black face and larger size.
Taxonomy
Genus: Oxyura; Family: Anatidae; Order: Anseriformes.
- Scientific name
- Oxyura ferruginea
- Authority
- (Eyton, 1838)
- Order
- Anseriformes
- Family
- Anatidae
- Genus
- Oxyura
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Migration pattern: Complete migrants.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Qilian Bluetail
Tarsiger albocoeruleus
A newly described species endemic (at least as a breeder) to a few pockets of northern China. Essentially visually identical to Red-flanked Bluetail: adult male is sky-blue above and pale below, with orange sides and a small white eyebrow. Female and juvenile are more subdued, but still have the rufous flanks and blue tail. Breeds in humid montane forest, often favoring mossy, damp areas. Wintering range and habits essentially unknown, but probably overlap those of Red-flanked Bluetail. Can be hyperactive, moving quickly across the forest floor, stopping to flick the tail downwards. Best identified by range and distinctive song: a short, descending sweet yet burry phrase repeated regularly, very different from the song of Red-flanked Bluetail. Also has a variety of calls that are less distinctive, including a rising “sweet”, a descending “seet”, and a series of low, dry notes.
Andean Lapwing
Vanellus resplendens
Large, boldly patterned shorebird of high Andean bogs, wetlands, and lakeshores; also ranges into grassy pastures in the northern part of its range. Usually in pairs or loose flocks, feeding with typical stop-start action of plovers. Little or no range overlap with Southern Lapwing of lowlands and foothills. Note dove-gray head and breast (no crest) and pink bill and legs (duller on immature). In flight shows bold black-and-white pattern on wings and tail. Often noisy, especially when flushed.
Pink Robin
Petroica rodinogaster
Small, plump Australian robin. Male very dark gray above and on throat, with lovely pink breast and belly. Tail completely dark, unlike Rose Robin. Female brown above, paler below, sometimes tinged pinkish. Breeds in very wet dense rainforest gullies in Tasmania and Victoria, sometimes in other more open habitats in winter.
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