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The Life History of the Wood Duck
The Aix sponsa is a dabbler duck, which is defined as a waterfowl that does not dive into the water for its food, but rather pecks at the surface of the water to locate its food.
Their feet are located more toward the center of their body, equipping them to walk well on land. Wood ducks experience a higher brood loss than any other waterfowl due to the habitat in which they live and breed.
They are seasonally monogamous waterfowl during courtship. Wood ducks are the only North American duck that can perch in trees. Migration, which occurs at night in flock sizes of about 23 birds, begins in September
and ends by November. They can stay in the area as late as December depending on the food available and the weather.
Photograph by USFWS
The diet of wood ducks is very diverse consisting of acorns (hence their nickname, the acorn duck, due to their fondness for acorns), pecans, corn, wild rice and celery, wheat, smartweeds, and millet.
For every stage of a wood duck's life, different habitats are necessary
Breeding requires a wetland or hardwood forest area.
Raising young needs a marsh or swampland.
Roosting is in forests, wetlands, swamps, or any region that offers cover and protection.
Molting requires a thickly wooded area, as protection for their inability to fly.
Migration demands riparian corridors or hardwood bottomlands.
Both drake (male) and hen (female) wood ducks share some similar features such as:
Length around 20 inches
Broad tail and wingspan, sacrifices speed for maneuverability
Acute senses of hearing aiding them in forested areas
Excellent peripheral vision due to the position of eyes
Largest eyes of any duck species in North America
Most nocturnal waterfowl
Best sense of smell than any other waterfowl in North America
Narrow tongue for aligning acorns down their throat
Short, narrow bills with a hooked end
Can outrun any other duck species on land
Long and more curved toenails, giving them a firm grip when perching in trees
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Photographs by Alan MacKeigan, USFWS
Drakes (male)
Uniquely decorated with various colors
Weighs about 1.5 pounds
White markings on body breaks up the shape helping camouflage them into landscape
Hens (female)
Dull brown coloration
Weighs about 1.4 lbs, slightly less than drake
Primary diet needs different during pre-laying and laying, invertebrates for protein
Nesting behavior
Use natural tree cavities and nesting boxes provided by humans
Average clutch is 12 eggs, with a possible 10 to 11 hatched eggs, after a 30-day incubation period
A nest containing 15-20 or more eggs is a sign of nest dumping -
several factors can be the cause: response to nest predation, dense nesting, expanding populations, or competition for limited space
Ducklings leave nest site within 24 hours of hatching and become fledglings after 2 1/2 months
Four methods for searching for food
Pecking at surface objects on land and in the water
Tipping into the water to reach submerged food
Walking through forest to locate nuts
Diving in shallow water
Molting habits
Becomes flightless for four to six weeks
Seeks refuge with extensive cover and a rich food source
Prefers extensive emergent marshes or shrub swamps
After completed molt, gain migration feathers
Some of the dominant egg predators
Raccoon and Gray squirrel
Black rat snake
Flicker and red-bellied woodpecker
Photograph by Warren Greene, USFWS
Main duckling predators
Red-shouldered hawk
Barred and great horned owls
Largemouth bass
Snapping turtles
Bullfrogs
Mink and great blue heron
Some adult predators
Raccoon
Fox
Great horned owl
Barred owl
Peregrine falcon
Goshawk
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