Redhead - Aythya americana

Habitat

The redhead is found in shallow freshwater lakes, ponds, marshlands, coastal waters, and bays.

Diet

The redhead is a diving duck. It searches for aquatic vegetation in muddy shallow areas of water. It may also eat mollusks, aquatic insects, and small fish

Life Cycle

Pairs form in the late winter or the early spring. The female lays 10-16 eggs in a cup-shaped nest lined with down and attached to reeds and other marsh vegetation. The male leaves the female once she begins to incubate the eggs. The eggs hatch in 25-26 days. The ducklings are precocial and can feed themselves shortly after hatching. The ducklings fledge when they are about two months old. The female sometimes lays her eggs in the nests of other ducks.

Behavior

Like most diving ducks, the redhead's legs are set back on its body to help it swim and dive. It is awkward on land, and it has to run across the water to take of in flight. The male has a meow-like call, and the female makes a squawking sound.