What tha’ bill?
By Debbie Wiggins, Golden Eagle Guest Blogger
If your bathtub’s rubber ducky came to life it would undoubtedly be a Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis). The unique compact shape of these diving ducks is distinctive. They seem to ride so low in the water it’s almost like seeing half of a duck. Like a rubber ducky, they are stocky and thick-necked.
Noticeably smaller than the Mallard, the Ruddy Duck is the only North American member of a six-species group known as ‘stiff-tailed ducks.’ The spiky fan-shaped tail is often cocked up in the air, hence ‘rudder’. Ruddy also refers to the rich chestnut red of the male’s body in breeding plumage. In addition, the male has a glossy black head with a big bright white cheek patch, and (can’t be missed) a bright sky-blue bill in breeding plummage! Wow!
This blue bill wouldn’t be quite so impressive if it wasn’t so broad and scooped. The female shares the broad, scooped bill shape, but hers is black, never blue. Her feathers are lighter brown, sometimes appearing speckled, with a darker brown back. She has a brown cap that covers her eyes, and instead of a cheek patch, she has an unassuming cheek stripe, brown, running from the lower part of the bill just past her ear. And the same stiff tail. The male in non-breeding plumage looks very much like the female except for the big white cheek patch. His bill turns from blue to black.
Male Ruddy Duck by Ken Miracle
Bottom Feeders
Across North America, Ruddy Ducks are predominantly found in wetlands, ponds, and lakes. Even though they are diving ducks, they prefer the shallower freshwater habitat with abundant emergent vegetation which provides both food and shelter. When they dive, they propel themselves with their big feet, compressing the feathers and tucking the wings against their bodies. They dive at an oblique angle all the way to the bottom to probe for food in the silt. Opening and closing their bills, they filter the silt, keeping the food and expelling substrate and water. They can do this for up to 30 seconds before returning to the surface.
Female Ruddy Duck by Ken MIracle
And here’s where we adore research because it tells us that Ruddy Ducks surface about 1.5 meters from the spot where they submerged. What a useful thing to know if you are just about to get a good look at that Ruddy Duck—and it dives. They are the least vegetarian of any of the ducks. Favorite food—midges and midge larvae. Most feeding occurs at night, sleeping is a popular daytime activity.
Pardon Me
Ruddy Ducks don’t quack like a duck. In fact they don’t quack at all. Silent most of the year, vocalization and other ‘body noises’ increase during the breeding season. In the most impressive of his mating displays, he inflates his tracheal air sacs and beats his bill rapidly on his chest, causing an audible tapping sound and creating vibrations which cause the water in front of him to bubble furiously. The display ends with an audible belch as he extends the neck forward and seems to visibly deflate (watch some videos!) This is called, logically, the Bubbling Display. In another, the Display Flight, the male rushes the female, causing an audible popping sound attributed to the feet, which along with the wings, propel the bird forward.
Male Ruddy Duck by Ken Miracle
Overwintering Ruddy Ducks will form loose flocks, but not large ones, and not with other ducks. As is common in other ducks, territorial aggression increases during breeding season. The relationship of the breeding pair can be called monogamous, or not. Once breeding has occurred, some males continue to pursue and attempt to mate with additional females. The female selects the nest site in dense marshy vegetation, and the nest itself is a woven platform of grasses and cattails, lined with down, and anchored to other vegetation. Ruddies often lay eggs in each others' nests and in those of other ducks and marsh birds. Her round white eggs are the largest of any duck, and a large clutch may be almost impossible for her to cover with her small body. Once hatched, Ruddy ducklings can dive and feed themselves when they are only 2 days old!
You can now see Ruddy Ducks at Hyatt Hidden Lakes Reserve in Boise. Observe them, you smile. Know them, you might even laugh. Thanks, Ruddy Ducks!
Non-breeding male and female Ruddy Ducks by Ken Miracle
Resources
Cornell Lab of Ornithology, birds the world.com, allaboutbirds.com
National Audubon Society, act.audubon.org
Bill Schuss, columnist, EastIdahoNews.com 2017
Birdzpedia.com
Next up: Wood Duck (Aix sponsa)