Overview
This duck is often confused with the Canvasback due to the coloration both birds share. These larger diving ducks have an average length of 20 inches and a weight of around 2 to 2.5 lbs.. The drake Redhead has a reddish head with a pale grey colored back and sides. The bill on the drake is blue and a greyish. The hen on the other hand, has a brown head and body with a grey colored bill. When it comes to appetite these birds dive mainly to look for food. They consume aquatic vegetation and plants as well as mollusks.
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Bird
- Family
- Anatidae
- Genus
- Aythya
- Species
- americana
Habitat
The Redhead spends most of its breeding season in the Northern Prairie marshes in Northwestern United States and Canada. When these birds fly south they can be found anywhere ranging from the Great Lakes to Mexico and Florida, however, around 70-80 percent of the population fly to Mexico and Laguna Madre in Texas.
Diet
Small, semi-permanent wetlands in non-forested country where the water is deep enough to provide dense emergent vegetation is considered ideal breeding habitat for redheads.When wintering, redheads switch to large areas of water near the coast that are protected from wave action but can also be found in reservoirs, lakes, playa wetlands, freshwater river deltas, coastal marshes, estuaries and bays.
Behavior
Spring: They leave their winter range in late January and February with all birds migrating by mid-March. In western North America, migrants begin arriving in Oregon, British Columbia] and Colorado in February. In central North America, migrants arrive as soon as temperatures open wetlands and lakes, which can range from late February (Nebraska) to early May (Alberta, Manitoba and Iowa). In the Great Lakes region and north-eastern North America, migrants will also arrive as soon as bodies of water open up. Fall: Western birds migrate through Great Basin to the Pacific Coast. In British Columbia, fall migration begins in September and continues through October. The Great Salt Lake region is of particular importance to migrants in western United States. Central North American redheads will begin migrating earlier, around August/September and go through the Great Plains to the Texas coast. Eastern populations will migrate through the Great Lakes region to the Atlantic Coast or Florida from October to November. Most redheads winter along the Gulf of Mexico (offshore Louisiana, Florida and Mexico) however eastern populations will winter in South Carolina.
Hunting
Typically hunted with a 12 ga shotgun. Shot size #2-4 is sufficient. Effectively hunted with decoys and calling. Dogs are used for bird retrieval. Steel shot is required for waterfowl in the United States.
Conservation Status
Listed as Least Concern by IUCN.