Definition of wood duck : a showy American duck (Aix sponsa) which nests in tree cavities and the males of which have a large crest and iridescent plumage varied with green, purple, black, white, and chestnut.
What does the phrase Wood Duck mean?
wood duck in British English
noun. a duck, Aix sponsa, of wooded swamps, lakes, etc, in North America, having a very brightly coloured plumage in the male.
What is another name for a wood duck?
The colorful drake Wood Duck is one of North America’s most beautiful waterfowl – an aquatic counterpart of the male Painted Bunting. This widespread, fast-flying denizen of swampy woods is also called the Carolina Duck, Swamp Duck, or Squealer Duck.
What is a female wood duck?
Female Wood Duck (Aix sponsa), also known as the Carolina Duck, with her chicks. Females incubate eggs alone, whilst males initially remain close to the nest site to guard against predators, before later withdrawing and migrating to a different site while they undergo a change of plumage.
What is the meaning of wood Drake?
male wood duck
Definitions of wood drake. male wood duck. type of: Aix sponsa, summer duck, wood duck, wood widgeon. showy North American duck that nests in hollow trees.
Are wood ducks capitalized?
The general rule by convention and in many style guides for generations has been that common names of mammals, birds, insects, fish and other life forms are not capitalized.
What are wood ducks known for?
The Wood Duck is the only North American duck that regularly produces two broods in one year. The Wood Duck nests in trees near water, sometimes directly over water, but other times over a mile away. After hatching, the ducklings jump down from the nest tree and make their way to water.
What states are wood ducks in?
In the summer, wood ducks can be seen in every state east of the Rocky Mountains and throughout the Pacific Northwest. Wood ducks can be found in ponds, lakes, marshes, and along rivers and streams. They prefer areas that have a mix of water habitats and forests.
What’s a wood duck look like?
Wood Ducks have a unique shape among ducks—a boxy, crested head, a thin neck, and a long, broad tail. In flight, they hold their head up high, sometimes bobbing it. Overall, their silhouette shows a skinny neck, long body, thick tail, and short wings.
Do wood ducks mate for life?
Ducks do not form long-term pair bonds, but instead form seasonal bonds, otherwise known as seasonal monogamy, in which new bonds are formed each season. Seasonal monogamy occurs in about 49 percent of all waterfowl species.
Where did wood ducks originate?
Their breeding habitat is wooded swamps, shallow lakes, marshes, ponds and creeks in the eastern United States, the west coast of the United States, some adjacent parts of southern Canada, and the west coast of Mexico.
Can a wood duck mate with a mallard?
Waterfowl crossbreed more often than any other family of birds. Scientists have recorded more than 400 hybrid combinations among waterfowl species. Mallards and wood ducks in particular have demonstrated the capability of hybridizing with a surprisingly wide range of other species.
Where does a wood drake rest?
The poet writes that ‘When despair for the world grows in me’, he lies down ‘where the wood drake rests in his beauty on the water and the great heron feeds‘. He also says that wild creatures ‘do not ‘tax their lives with forethought of grief’ All this means so much to me.
When despair for the world grows in me and I wake in the night at the least sound in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be I go?
When despair for the world grows in me and I wake in the night at the least sound in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be, I go and lie down where the wood drake rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
What is the name for the study of birds?
Ornithology is the study of birds.
Do you capitalize grizzly bear in a sentence?
Therefore, brown bear is not capitalized. However, the subspecies of brown bear “Ursus arctos horribilis,” commonly called the Grizzly Bear, is usually capitalized, but not always (sometimes Grizzly bear or grizzly bear), even though there are still different lineages of grizzlies.
Is Blue Jay a proper noun?
If you’re writing about that splendid species the Blue Jay, you capitalize both words, but if you’re writing about several species of jays that happen to be blue, you lowercase them.
What is unique about wood ducks?
Wood Ducks are unique among most waterfowl in that they need bodies of water that are near trees. They use lakes, ponds, and streams that are adjacent to wooded areas so they can nest in tree cavities. In Nevada, these ducks are found year-round in the western part and breeding in the northeastern part of the state.
Can you eat wood ducks?
In the early season we shoot a lot of woodies, which really are a wonderful eating duck. They don’t require a lot of extra seasoning—just a little salt and pepper, a hot oven to roast a whole duck, and you’re good to go.
What are some fun facts about wood ducks?
They are the only North American ducks that can produce two broods in one season! Wood Ducks generally breed in habitats such as ponds, creeks, marshes, and wooded swamps. These birds often nest in tree cavities close to the water. They also use nest boxes when they are available.
What state has the most wood ducks?
Wood Duck. The habitat wood ducks like best—scrub-shrub and forested wetlands—is most abundantly found in Mississippi Flyway states, and Minnesota and Wisconsin have averaged the largest wood duck harvests since 2001.