Collar duck
| Collar duck | ||||||||||||
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Collar duck ( Histrionicus histrionicus ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Histrionicus | ||||||||||||
| Lesson , 1828 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Histrionicus histrionicus | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
The collar duck ( Histrionicus histrionicus ) is a bird in the duck family . The scientific name, histro , comes from Latin and means actor. The name is derived from the unusually bright color of the drake in its magnificent dress, which is vaguely reminiscent of the dress of a harlequin . The collar duck is represented in a gappy circumpolar manner and is the smallest species of duck found in Europe. However, its European range is limited to Iceland, where it breeds particularly frequently at Lake Myvatn .
The collar duck is an extremely rare wanderer in Central Europe. In the Netherlands a female was observed in 1982/83, on the Schleswig-Holstein coast there is an observation for the year 1980. In recent decades, however, there have occasionally been captive refugees, so that the status assessment of field observations is becoming increasingly difficult.
Appearance
The collar duck is a small, compact duck. Their body length is between 38 and 45 centimeters. The wingspan is 60 to 70 centimeters. Collared ducks weigh between 550 and 750 grams. Characteristic for the species is a small, short beak, a high forehead, a rounded head, a thick and short-looking neck and the wedge-shaped, pointed tail. Jonathan Alderfer describes the physique as so characteristic that the duck can already be recognized by it. While the drakes are unmistakable because of their plumage, the females have a similarity to the females of the velvet duck . However, these are overall darker and significantly larger.
The males of the collar duck have a conspicuously blue-black colored plumage in their magnificent dress. The flanks are reddish maroon. The white spot of color in front of the eyes, a crescent-shaped white spot behind the ear and a white longitudinal band on the back of the neck are striking. When resting, the body plumage of the male is predominantly gray-brown, but still has the characteristic white head color. Males in the first year of life already have the coloration of adult males, but are generally less colorful.
The females have dark brown plumage. The belly is light. Like the males, they have white color markings on the head. However, these are not as clearly delineated as in the male. Most noticeable is the white patch of color behind the ear.
In flight, the collar duck can be recognized by its small head and steep forehead as well as its long tail. The wings appear very dark in both sexes. The light belly of the female is usually not clearly visible in the flight image. Their flight is very fast and they usually fly close to the water. They can usually be seen in small groups.
voice
The collar duck's voice is very high. The high-pitched and squeaky whistles, reminiscent of the squeaking sounds of fighting mice, can be heard predominantly during courtship. During this time the male whistles wiiah wii-ah . The male's calls are staccato-shaped and are reminiscent of the calls of the little tern . Flying squads shout a tightly lined up gü gü gü .... that is penetrating.
distribution
This species is found mainly in the northern regions of Asia and America . The breeding area extends from the west coast of Greenland in an easterly direction to Baffin Island. From there it extends across Labrador to Maine and from Alaska to Mackenzie and in the south over the Rocky Mountains to Idaho. In Asia, the breeding areas extend from eastern Siberia to Kamchatka and southern Japan and also reach Lake Baikal. The only European breeding area is Iceland. They are particularly numerous on the Laxa River , which has its source in Lake Myvatn in Iceland.
As a habitat, collar ducks prefer fast-flowing waters with a rich supply of aquatic insects. They often hang out near waterfalls. During the winter months they move to a nearby coast. The East Siberian collar ducks often move particularly far because the inland waters on which they breed in summer all freeze over during the winter months. The Pacific coast from Kamchatka to South Japan and Korea is one of their wintering areas. The collar ducks that breed in North America spend the winter months in the coastal sections between the Aleutian Islands and southern California or in the state of New York on the east coast of North America. Even during the winter months, they prefer to stay in strongly moving water and are often found on rocky coasts.
Way of life
In winter, collar ducks only move short distances to the coasts of the Atlantic or the Pacific. This bird is rarely found in continental Europe.
Crested ducks dive for their food, which consists of crustaceans , molluscs and insects . Dives go to a depth of three to four meters. Collared ducks stay under water for between 15 and 25 seconds.
The collar duck is still common in places, although the populations are declining overall. The populations that breed on the Pacific coast are significantly larger than those on the Atlantic coast.
Reproduction
The breeding season of the collar duck falls from mid-May to early July. Most collar ducks start breeding from mid-June. They only raise one clutch per year.
The collar duck prefers to breed in very fast flowing rivers. Loose breeding colonies can occasionally be found on suitable river islands. The nest is built on the ground and is usually hidden in the dwarf shrub thicket. The hollow is lined with little plant material, some down and feathers. The down used is light brown with a light center. The full clutch usually consists of six to eight eggs. Occasionally there are also clutches with nine eggs. The eggs are elliptical to spindle-shaped. They have a smooth shell that is slightly shiny. They are cream-colored to pale brownish-yellow and measure 58.3 × 42 millimeters.
The female breeds alone. The incubation period is 27 to 33 days. The chicks are only led by the female, even if the male was still near the nest at the beginning of the breeding season. After about 40 days, the young are fledged.
Duration
The total worldwide population is estimated at more than 270,000 individuals. In Greenland and Iceland there are 4,000 to 10,000 breeding pairs. The European winter population is 22,000 to 31,000 individuals. The IUCN classifies the collar duck as harmless ( least concern ), as the range of this duck species is very large and the population numbers have increased in recent years.
Like many other seabirds, the crested duck population is threatened by oil spills. The Exxon Valdez disaster , which led to an oil spill off the coast of Alaska in 1989, almost completely wiped out the collar duck population in Prince William Sound .
supporting documents
literature
- Jonathan Alderfer (Ed.): Complete Birds of North America. National Geographic, Washington DC 2006, ISBN 0-7922-4175-4 .
- Hans-Günther Bauer, Einhard Bezzel , Wolfgang Fiedler (eds.): The compendium of birds in Central Europe: Everything about biology, endangerment and protection. Volume 1: Nonpasseriformes - non-sparrow birds. Aula-Verlag Wiebelsheim, Wiesbaden 2005, ISBN 3-89104-647-2 .
- John Gooders, Trevor Boyer: Ducks of Britain and the Northern Hemisphere. Dragon's World, Surrey 1986, ISBN 1-85028-022-3 .
- Janet Kear (Ed.): Ducks, Geese and Swans. Oxford University Press, 2005, ISBN 0-19-854645-9 .
- Erich Rutschke: Europe's wild ducks - biology, ecology, behavior. Aula Verlag, Wiesbaden 1988, ISBN 3-89104-449-6 .
- Richard Sale: A Complete Guide to Arctic Wildlife. Christopher Helm Publisher, London 2006, ISBN 0-7136-7039-8 .
Web links
- Histrionicus histrionicus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2008. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2008. Accessed January 30 of 2009.
- Videos, photos and sound recordings of Histrionicus histrionicus in the Internet Bird Collection
Individual evidence
- ^ Bauer et al., P. 127.
- ↑ Kear, p. 706.
- ↑ Sale, p. 123.
- ↑ Alderfer, p. 33.
- ↑ Sale, p. 123.
- ↑ Kear, p. 706.
- ^ Hans-Heiner Bergmann, Hans-Wolfgang Helb, Sabine Baumann; The voices of the birds of Europe - 474 bird portraits with 914 calls and chants on 2,200 sonograms. Aula-Verlag, Wiesbaden 2008, ISBN 978-3-89104-710-1 , p. 67.
- ↑ Gooders and Boyer, p. 121.
- ↑ Gooders and Boyer, p. 122.
- ↑ Alderfer, p. 33.
- ↑ Collin Harrison, Peter Castell: Field Guide Bird Nests, Eggs and Nestlings. HarperCollins Publisher, ISBN 0-00-713039-2 , p. 75.
- ^ Bauer et al., P. 127.
- ↑ BirdLife Factsheet on the collar duck , accessed December 14, 2010
- ↑ Sale, p. 120.