Duck to blacken: appearance and what the crested bird eats, migration and enemies

Crested duck is a waterfowl that spends most of its life on the water and dives to the depths in search of food. Birds live in large flocks, settle near water bodies, and fly to warmer climes for the winter. In the second year of life, they form strong pairs that do not break up until death. The duck has short wings, it is difficult for them to fly, but this feature does not prevent the birds from diving.

Appearance black crested

Duck, belonging to the species tufted duck, is a small waterfowl from the Duck family. Its other names are nigella, white-sided. Ducks live collectively, in large flocks.Drakes have a very beautiful appearance: plumage is shiny black with a purple tint. On the sides of the males there are snow-white stripes passing to the belly and bottom of the wings, and on a small head there is a crest combed back (several hanging feathers).

Females have more restrained tones in the color of feathers, the black color is diluted with brown, and there is no snow-white side stripe at all, the belly has a chocolate tint. The tuft of ducks is a little shorter.

The body length of the Crested Duck is 42-52 centimeters, weight - 505-705 grams, wingspan - 62-72 centimeters. The head of the birds is rounded, the neck is thin and short, the eyes are yellow, with a black dot in the middle. The beak is short and wide, bluish-gray in color, with a black tip. Paws are gray with dark webs.

In the wild, the crested black lives for about 20 years. Ducks spend most of their time on the water. They get food by diving. They can dive to a depth of 4 meters. Take off from the surface of the water after a short run.The flight of birds is fast. They can also take off from land. This duck does not make a typical quack. Females croak or snort. Drakes make a sound similar to the whistle "gun-gun".

Habitat

Crested duck - waterfowl and diving bird. Such ducks settle near lakes, rivers, ponds, artificial reservoirs with fresh water. They avoid swamps and floodplains. This migratory bird winters in warm regions. In spring, it arrives in various regions of the temperate zone of Eurasia. Numerous flocks of ducks have been spotted in Belarus, Ukraine and Russia.

Birds settle in different types of water bodies, but prefer fish farm ponds where black-headed gulls live. Ducks prefer deep lakes and reservoirs, with an abundance of fish, insects, emersal and coastal vegetation.

Migrations

The Crested Duck is a migratory, transit-migratory bird species. They arrive from warm countries at the end of March and at the beginning of April. On water bodies of the temperate zone, they appear when there is no ice on the surface of the water. At the end of May, ducks build nests and begin to hatch chicks. A month later, the ducklings hatch from the eggs. At the second month of life, they can already fly.

All ducks prepare for the flight in September. First, the wanderings begin. They precede the flight to the wintering grounds. Autumn departure occurs at the end of October, beginning of November. It hibernates in large flocks, several thousand birds, in the subtropical zone, that is, on the coasts of France, Holland, Belgium, the British Isles, as well as on the coasts of the Black, Mediterranean, Caspian Seas and even in North Africa. A small percentage of ducks remain for the winter in the temperate zone of Eurasia.

What do they eat

The main diet of birds is food of animal origin. Ducks eat insects, mosquitoes, dragonflies, frogs, mollusks, small fish. With a lack of animal feed, birds feed on vegetation. Chernyad dives well and can get fish from a depth of 3-4 and even 10 meters. A duck can stay underwater for almost a minute.

Duck breeding

Birds are ready for breeding 1-2 years after birth. The crested black finds its pair in the winter. In early April, birds fly to Eurasia, to places of the temperate climate zone, until mid-May they stay in one common flock. Pairs are separated when the ducks sit on the nests. Crested Duck starts nesting later than other duck species.

Birds begin to nest in late May, early June. The nesting period depends on the water level, as well as on the availability of suitable nesting sites. Ducks prefer to settle under the protection of black-headed gulls. Birds nest together or singly.They can form colonies of twenty pairs or more. They often nest near river terns and black-headed gulls.

Nests are built on the ground, no further than 50 meters from the reservoir. As a building material, dry grass, particles of reeds, twigs, feathers, fluff are used. Nests are built in well-hidden and inconspicuous places, in dense thickets of tall coastal vegetation, in blackberry bushes, in reeds, reeds, and sedges. For nesting often choose bumps, small islands. The nest is cup-shaped, about 30 cm in diameter and almost 16 cm deep.

There are 6-11 eggs in the clutch, and sometimes even 20-27 eggs, however, belonging to different females. The shell is gray-green, matte, smooth. Eggs weigh 53 grams. They are 6 cm long and 4 cm in diameter. Females lay their eggs in late May or early June.

Incubation lasts almost a month (23-27) days. In case of danger, females often leave the masonry and build new nests. During the season they manage to feed one brood. Nesting ends in July.

Only the female takes care of the hatched chicks. A duck with ducklings leaves the nest and goes to places where there is more food. In the first days of life, the chicks peck at insects and plants from the water. Grown up ducklings dive for food. Chicks become independent at the fifth week of life. At the age of two months, in August, young ducks take to the wing. In October-November, together with their parents, they fly to warmer climes.

Natural enemies

Crested ducks are often the prey of hunters. These birds have tasty, albeit reminiscent of fish, fatty meat. The natural enemies of the crested duck are crows that destroy eggs and eat small ducklings, as well as herring gulls. Nestlings that cannot fly often become prey to predators (foxes, wolves), so the entire brood rarely survives to adulthood.Birds of prey (hawks, kites) prey on crested duck.

Recommended