American Black Duck vs Lesser Whistling-duck
Anas rubripes compared with Dendrocygna javanica
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | American Black Duck | Lesser Whistling-duck |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Anas rubripes | Dendrocygna javanica |
| Order | Anseriformes | Anseriformes |
| Family | Anatidae | Anatidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 53.4 cm (21.0 in) | 38.8 cm (15.3 in) |
| Weight | 1211.25 g (42.73 oz) | 525.0 g (18.52 oz) |
| Diet | Eats fish and aquatic invertebrates; dives in coastal and freshwater habitats; diet shifts toward molluscs … | Grazes subarctic grasses and rushes; migratory; winters on estuarine mudflats and coastal grasslands eating eelgrass … |
| Clutch Size | 1-17 | 7-17 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Shared Habitats
American Black Duck only
Lesser Whistling-duck only
American Black Duck
Freshwater and brackish wetlands in eastern North America from Atlantic Canada south along the coast to Georgia. Breeds in northern bogs and wetlands. Winters on coastal marshes, estuaries, and freshwater lakes.
Lesser Whistling-duck
Freshwater wetlands, lakes, rice paddies, mangroves, and slow rivers across South and Southeast Asia from India through southern China to Borneo and Indonesia. Common near cultivated land and human settlements.
Song & Call Comparison
American Black Duck
Female produces a loud, deep quacking series; male gives a low, raspy grunt. Voice is deeper and huskier than a Mallard; pairs call powerfully across northeastern North American wetlands.
Lesser Whistling-duck
A softer, higher-pitched whistle than other Dendrocygna. Call is a quick 'we-we' given in flight. Smaller size reflected in higher-pitched and thinner quality of call.
Geographic Range & Migration
American Black Duck
Breeds in the steppe zone of Central Asia; winters in South Asia, East Africa, and coastal Southeast Asia.
Lesser Whistling-duck
Breeds on tundra of northern Canada and Alaska; winters on the Pacific coast from California to Mexico and Central America.
Conservation Status
American Black Duck
Lesser Whistling-duck
How to Tell Them Apart
American Black Duck
Sooty dark brown body; head and neck paler buff with dark streaking. Iridescent purple speculum without white border. Males have yellow-green bill; females olive with orange blotches. Silvery underwings in …
Lesser Whistling-duck
Warm chestnut-brown overall; head and neck brown; upperparts dark brown. Chestnut rump and upper-tail conspicuous in flight. Flanks chestnut with pale streaks. Bill and legs dark gray. Sexes similar.
About These Birds
American Black Duck
A large dark brown dabbling duck closely resembling a very dark female Mallard, with purple speculum, yellowish-olive bill in males, and orange legs. Common in eastern North America. Hybridizes freely with Mallard; pure populations declining in the interior.
Lesser Whistling-duck
A small warm brown whistling-duck with chestnut upper-tail coverts, a pale face, and dark brown cap. The most widespread and common whistling-duck in Asia. Found in freshwater wetlands from the Indian subcontinent to Southeast Asia. Nests in holes in trees and sometimes in thatched roofs.