African Black Duck vs Common Shelduck

Anas sparsa comparé à Tadorna tadorna

Side-by-Side Comparison

Attribut African Black Duck Common Shelduck
Nom scientifique Anas sparsa Tadorna tadorna
Ordre Anseriformes Anseriformes
Famille Anatidae Anatidae
Statut de conservation Least Concern Least Concern
Longueur
Envergure 49,5 cm (19.5 in) 62,8 cm (24.7 in)
Poids 996,8333333333334 g (35.16 oz) 1035,5 g (36.53 oz)
Régime alimentaire -- --
Taille de la couvée 4-9 3-18
Population Trend

Habitat Comparison

Habitats partagés

African Black Duck only

Aucun(e)

Common Shelduck only

Aucun(e)

African Black Duck

Fast-flowing rocky rivers and streams, mountain gorges, and waterfalls from sea level to 4,000 m across sub-Saharan Africa from Ethiopia and Kenya south to the Cape. Requires clear turbulent water with boulders.

Common Shelduck

Coastal estuaries, mudflats, saltmarshes, sand dunes, and inland saline lakes from northwest Europe east across Eurasia to China. Winters mainly on tidal estuaries and coastal wetlands. Nests in burrows.

Song & Call Comparison

African Black Duck

Chant

Produces a harsh, resonant quacking call; alarm is a loud, emphatic quack repeated rapidly. Both sexes call with strong quacking; pairs duet with synchronized calls along African rivers.

Common Shelduck

Chant

Male gives a whistled 'wheee'; female gives a cackling series of rapid nasal 'ak-ak-ak' notes. One of the most sexually dimorphic calls of any shelduck species.

Geographic Range & Migration

African Black Duck

Common Shelduck

Breeds in Siberian tundra; winters in eastern and southern Africa, and in South and Southeast Asia. Trans-hemispheric migrant.

Statut de conservation

Least Concern

African Black Duck

Least Concern

Common Shelduck

How to Tell Them Apart

African Black Duck

Plumage

Dark blackish-brown plumage with bold white spots on back and scapulars. Iridescent blue-green speculum with white borders. Head dark with pale spots. Bill and legs dark gray. Sexes similar. Fast-flowing …

Common Shelduck

Plumage

White body with dark green head, broad chestnut breastband, and black scapular stripes. Red bill with basal knob in males. Green speculum and black wingtips. Underparts white with black belly …

About These Birds

African Black Duck

A medium-sized dark brown duck with white spots on the back, a dark bill, and orange legs. Found along fast-flowing rocky rivers and streams in Africa. Territorial and monogamous; pairs defend stretches of river. Related to Pacific Black Duck.

Common Shelduck

A large distinctive shelduck with a white body, dark green head, broad chestnut breast band, and a bright red bill with a knob in males. Common along European and Asian coasts and estuaries. Nests in rabbit burrows or hollow trees. Large moult migrations concentrate in Germany's Wadden Sea.

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