Pink-headed Duck vs Blue-billed Teal
Rhodonessa caryophyllacea compared with Spatula hottentota
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Pink-headed Duck | Blue-billed Teal |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Rhodonessa caryophyllacea | Spatula hottentota |
| Order | Anseriformes | Anseriformes |
| Family | Anatidae | Anatidae |
| Conservation Status | Critically Endangered | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 50.2 cm (19.8 in) | 29.4 cm (11.6 in) |
| Weight | 963.8 g (34.00 oz) | 269.2 g (9.50 oz) |
| Diet | Probably extinct; fed on fish, molluscs, and aquatic invertebrates in Indian subcontinent wetlands; diet recorded … | Feeds on seeds, aquatic plants, and invertebrates; filter-feeds in shallow water; broadly omnivorous and seasonally … |
| Clutch Size | 5-10 | 5-12 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Pink-headed Duck
Historically inhabited secluded freshwater pools, lakes, and marshes in tall grass and forest in the Ganges and Brahmaputra plains of India, Nepal, and Myanmar. Now possibly extinct or extremely rare.
Blue-billed Teal
Freshwater lakes, marshes, pans, and flooded grasslands across sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal and Sudan south to the Cape. Nomadic; follows seasonal rains. Common but easily overlooked among reed beds.
Song & Call Comparison
Pink-headed Duck
Critically Endangered; likely gives a soft, resonant quacking note judging from close relatives. The Pink-headed Duck may have produced a distinctive, mellow whistle unlike other pochards.
Blue-billed Teal
Male utters a soft, teal-like peep; female gives a muted quack. Pairs call quietly in dense papyrus; soft contact calls help birds maintain proximity in thick African marsh vegetation.
Geographic Range & Migration
Pink-headed Duck
Breeds in the northern prairies of Canada and US; winters in the Gulf Coast and along the Atlantic coast south to Florida.
Blue-billed Teal
Breeds in Arctic and subarctic Eurasia; winters at sea in the North Atlantic and from western Europe to eastern Africa.
Conservation Status
Pink-headed Duck
Blue-billed Teal
How to Tell Them Apart
Pink-headed Duck
Unmistakable; males have strikingly bright pink head and neck contrasting with dark chocolate-brown body and wings. Pink bill. Females have paler pink head. Possibly extinct; last confirmed 1949. Critically endangered …
Blue-billed Teal
Small; males have pale blue-gray bill contrasting with brown-gray body. Head finely spotted; underparts barred brown and white. Males show powder-blue forewing in flight. Females browner. African marsh species.
About These Birds
Pink-headed Duck
Possibly extinct; a distinctive large diving duck formerly found in the Ganges plains of India and Myanmar. Males had a deep pink head and neck contrasting with dark chocolate-brown body. Last confirmed sightings in the 1940s. One of Asia's greatest bird mysteries.
Blue-billed Teal
A small dark teal with blue-grey bill and legs, brown-streaked plumage, and fine pale spotting on the flanks. The most widespread teal in sub-Saharan Africa. Found on freshwater lakes and marshes. Highly nomadic; follows seasonal rainfall. Swims low in the water like a pochard.