Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Northern Shoveler, Anas clypeata, Löffelente

Northern Shoveler, Anas clypeata, Löffelente
From Birds Egypt 2010
Seen in South Sinai, Egypt in 2010. Fascinating birds!


From wiki:


This species is unmistakable in the northern hemisphere due to its large spatulate bill. The breeding male has an iridescent dark green head, white breast and chestnut belly and flanks. In flight, pale blue forewing feathers are revealed, separated from the green speculum by a white border. In early fall the male will have a white crescent on each side of the face. In non-breeding (eclipse) plumage, the drake resembles the female.
The female is a drab mottled brown like other dabblers, with plumage much like a female Mallard, but easily distinguished by the long broad bill, which is gray tinged with orange on cutting edge and lower mandible. The female’s forewing is grey.
They are 19 inches long (48 cm) and have a wingspan of 30 inches (76 cm) with a weight of 1.3 pounds (600 g).

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