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NORTHERN PINTAIL FACTS |
Description
The Northern Pintail is a fairly large duck - the male is larger than female. In breeding plumage the male has rich brown head with white stripe down the back of the head merging with white breast. The back and wings are grey. The female has greyish brown head and is mottled light brown with scalloped pattern. Often forms large flocks with other duck species. The non-breeding male is similar to the female.
Size
60cm - 75cm (male); 50cm - 64cm (female)
Habitat
wetlands, wet grassland, lake sides, marsh land, estuaries, tundra.
Food
feeds on plant matter and small invertebrates
Breeding
The nest is on the ground, hidden amongst vegetation, often away from water. Lays seven to nine cream coloured eggs.
Range
The Northern Pintail breeds in northern parts of Europe, Asia and North America, and migrates south to the equator in winter. It is a rare visitor to Australia with 18 occurrence records between 2000 and 2010 according to Atlas of living Australia (http://bie.ala.org.au)
Credits:
Map is from Atlas of Living Australia website at https://biocache.ala.org.au licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Classification
| Class: | Aves | | Order: | Anseriformes | | Family: | Anatidae | | Genus: | Anas | | Species: | acuta | | Common Name: | Northern Pintail |
Relatives in same Genus
Chestnut Teal (A. castanea)
Northern Shoveler (A. clypeata)
Grey Teal (A. gracilis)
Mallard (A. platyrhynchos)
Garganey (A. querquedula)
Australasian Shoveler (A. rhynchotis)
Pacific Black Duck (A. superciliosa)
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