Error message
Unable to fetch location details at this time.
Northern Shoveler (male)
Anas clypeata
22.2644, 114.167
Field Notes
Description:
With its distinctive, large shovel like bill.
"They use their highly specialized bill (from which their name is derived) to forage for aquatic invertebrates – a carnivorous diet. Their wide-flat bill is equipped with well-developed lamellae – small, comb-like structures on the edge of the bill that act like sieves, allowing the birds to skim crustaceans and plankton from the water's surface. This adaptation, more specialized in shovelers, gives them an advantage over other puddle ducks, with which they do not have to compete for food resources during most of the year. Thus, mud-bottomed marshes rich in invertebrate life are their habitat of choices." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Shoveler
Habitat:
Spotted at a wetland in Hong Kong
Comments (2)