Wood Duck
Photos by Bruce Dayton

Wood Duck - Female (Aix sponsa) Picture Wood Duck - Male (Aix sponsa) Picture
Female Male

ORDER: Anseriformes
FAMILY: Anatidae (Ducks and Geese - 52 Species)
SUB-FAMILY: Anatinae
 SPECIES: Wood Duck (Aix sponsa)

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Wood Duck

The male Wood Duck is one of the most beautiful of American waterfowl, the Wood Duck was hunted nearly to extinction at one time. Soon after hatching, the ducklings jump from the nesting cavity to the water. Snapping turtles take a heavy toll of the young.

SIZE

 The Wood Duck is a medium-sized (17-21”) duck.
DESCRIPTION

Male: The male is patterned in iridescent greens, purples and blues with distinctive white chin patch and face stripes; bill mainly red with black tip; long tail. Eyes have a red iris and eyelids.

Female: The female, less colorful, is grayish with broad white eye ring and a whitish throat.

NESTING Clutch size ranges from 8-14 eggs, which are incubated in 28 to 35 days. The Wood Duck nests in woodland areas along lakes, ponds, and vegetated wetland areas. They prefer nesting over water so the young have a soft landing. They nest in cavities in trees or man-made Wood Duck nesting boxes.
RANGE The wood ducks' range extends from Nova Scotia west to the north central U.S. and south to Florida and the Gulf of Mexico. Wood ducks winter in the southeastern United States.
HABITAT They habitat wooded swamps, low lakes, marshes and ponds.
DIET Most of the Wood Duck's diet is made up of aquatic plant material. Their diet also consists of seeds, tree fruit, aquatic insects, minnows, frogs and small salamanders.
Wood Duck
Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge
Seneca County, New York
CLICK - Wood Duck - Male Picture CLICK - Wood Duck - Male Picture
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CLICK - Wood Duck - Male and Female Picture CLICK - Wood Duck - Female and Ducklings Picture
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Wood Duck
Drawing by
Louis Agassiz Fuertes		 CLICK - Wood Duck Drawing
INTERESTING FACTS
Marsh
An area, which is usually wet or under water. It is a well-vegetated ground with neither a continuous cover of water nor a peaty soil.

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The images on this web page are copyrighted © 2003 - 2007 by Bruce Dayton. I want to share my photos to promote conservation and to help people identify and learn about the birds and other creatures that live with us on the North American continent. Please do not use any of my work in any non-profit or for-profit project without first getting written permission from me. You can ask for permission by emailing me at webmaster@wildlifeofnorthamerica.info. All reproductions must bear an appropriate credit.

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Wood Duck ( Aix sponsa )
Updated 04-22-2009