Duck dive: description and varieties, habitats and what they eat

Duck dive is named so because of the ability to dive and swim under water, getting their own food. There are several varieties of this wild duck. Species differ in feather coloring, lifestyle, and characteristics. Consider a detailed description of the varieties of diving ducks, where in nature it lives, how it lives and what it eats, how deep it can dive.

Duck description

Diving ducks live near swamps and in small calm rivers. Most common in North America, but also found in Asia and Africa. Several species of ducks are classified as divers, united by a common feature - the ability to dive deep into the water for prey.A duck can not only dive, but also swim underwater. This feature allows the birds to spend most of their time on the water. On land, they also appear, but they are vulnerable there, as they do not fly well. Other types of dives fly well, so they can be found more often on the shore.

Diving - ducks of medium size, smaller than the common mallard (weight - 0.8-1.5 kg), with a compact body. Their head is round, large, with a long neck, the beak is large and flat. The head may be with a crest. The color of the plumage is different, characteristic of each species. In drakes, it is brighter, in females it is more modest.

Varieties

There are 4 types of dives. They are named for the distinctive features of their appearance, they can even determine what species the bird belongs to.

Red-nosed pochard

The head of the drakes is chestnut in color, with a tuft, the iris of the eyes is red. The feather on the back and breast is black with greenery. Uppertail, tail and large wing feathers are dark.The wings are covered with a light cream feather. The wings have a white stripe with black edging. The females are colored brown. The beak of ducks of both sexes is rich red, narrow, the tip is down. The slope of the body is horizontal, the tail is inclined towards the water.

This duck weighs 1.7 kg and is considered a game bird. They are mined for their meat and beautiful feathers, which are used for jewelry. The meat of the red-headed pochard is dark, with orange-colored fat.

The red-nosed poch lives in Western Europe and Central Asia. Refers to migratory, flies for wintering to warmer climes - to southern China, Kazakhstan, on the Mediterranean coast.

Red-eyed dive

This kind of duck is named because of its bright red iris. Wild representatives live in South America and Africa, in sub-Saharan regions. They are non-migratory, nests are built in coastal thickets, incubation lasts 26 days.

Colors: head black with green, chest purple, body covered with brown feathers with light green. Males get this color after puberty, before this age, drakes, like females, are inconspicuous, gray-brown. Beak and legs are black.

Red-eyed diving ducks weigh an average of 1.3 kg, with males being larger and brighter-looking than females.

Pampas dive

The pampas dive lives in Latin America, in the southwest of the Atlantic Ocean (Falkland Islands). It is found in s alt water bodies and in a domesticated form - in ponds.

Feather on silver body with white speckling, purple head and chest. In the light, the feathers acquire a pinkish tint.The belly is white, large wing feathers are white with black edging. The eyes are red, the head is small, rounded. The base of the beak and the outgrowth are red, with a white middle and a black end.

Redhead

The diving duck of this variety is common in Europe, winters far from its habitats - in North Africa and the Middle East. Ducks can be migratory and settled.

In spring, the feather on the head and neck of the drake becomes bright red or light chestnut. The rest of the feathers are black. Females are brown-gray, they need inconspicuous plumage for camouflage when they sit on the nest. Red-headed ducks dive to a depth of 2 m and can be there for up to 20 seconds. On land they move slowly, take off with a running start.

How deep do they dive

Diving ducks can dive up to 2.5 meters underwater. Since they live in shallow waters, this is enough to find food there. But if necessary, they can dive deeper and reach the bottom of the reservoir.

Habitat

Diving ducks live in rivers, ponds, lakes, wetlands. They do not move far from their places. Nests are built on the accumulation of dead reeds or in coastal thickets. The clutch contains, on average, a dozen eggs. Hatching in different species lasts from 26 to 33 days. Drakes raise offspring, teach ducklings to get food. In a year, a female can lay and incubate up to 3 clutches of eggs. Chicks begin to fly at 2.5 months. They also learn to dive at the command of the drake, this behavior protects the duck family from danger.

Diving food

Diving ducks feed on food they can find in the water. These are green aquatic plants, seeds and pieces of rhizomes. Aquatic insects, worms, small mollusks, larvae, fish eggs floating in shallow water are eaten. Birds dive for insects and fish, for aquatic vegetation.

Food of animal origin in the diet of diving ducks is the main one, so their meat has a specific fishy smell.

During the mating season and molting time, diving enriches the body with protein, which is found in fish, crustaceans and shellfish. Ducks do not stay in the water all the time, they come ashore and bask in the sun. By autumn, they accumulate fat, which allows them to endure a cold and not always full winter.

Diving ducks are wild birds with beautiful plumage. They live in different parts of the world, they are not domesticated, no breeds are bred on their basis.But this does not prevent them from remaining a decorative and commercial bird. The main difference between diving and other duck species is the ability to dive underwater to get food. Ducks of these species are not protected, the population is not threatened by reduction or extinction. Therefore, ducks with beautiful plumage can be found in nature.