American Black Duck

Anas rubripes

Order ANSERIFORMES - Family ANATIDAE - Subfamily Anatinae

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1. Cool Facts
2. Description
3. Similar Species
4. Sound
5. Range
6. Habitat
7. Food
8. Behavior
9. Reproduction
10. Conservation Status
11. Other Names

A duck of the Northeast, the American Black Duck shows clear affinities with the Mallard. Populations declined precipitously in the mid-20th century, but the combined conservation efforts of the United States and Canada may have the numbers on the rise.

Cool Facts

• The American Black Duck occasionally strays from its normal range. One female banded in New Brunswick, Canada turned up in France.

• The American Black Duck has suffered somewhat from the introduction of captive-raised Mallards into its breeding range. The species hybridize (interbreed), and the Mallard may take over some breeding spots from the black duck. Still, the black duck seems to be holding its own in most of its range.

Description

• Size: 54-59 cm (21-23 in)
• Wingspan: 88-95 cm (35-37 in)
• Weight: 720-1640 g (25.42-57.89 ounces)

• Large dabbling duck.
• Body dark blackish-brown.
• Head and neck lighter brown.
• Legs and feet red.
• White underwing linings contrast sharply with dark body in flight.

• Narrow dark cap and eyeline.
• Speculum purple with no white around the edges, or only a narrow white line on the trailing edge.
• Tail dark.

Sex Differences

Male slightly larger, bill colors of males and females differ.

Male

Bill olive green to yellow. Markings of chest feathers U-shaped. Eclipse plumage similar, but chest feathers without internal markings.

Female

Slightly paler. Bill olive to greenish-gray, with dark markings. Markings of chest feathers V-shaped.

Immature

Similar to adult. Underparts more heavily streaked.

Similar Species

• Female Mallard has bold white borders to speculum, orange bill, whitish tail feathers, pale belly, and is paler overall.
• Eclipse male Mallard has paler appearance, rusty wash on chest, and white borders to the speculum.
• Mottled Duck has paler appearance, broader buffy edging and internal markings on the body feathers, a greenish-blue speculum with a narrow white trailing edge, and a black spot at the base of the bill at the gape.
• Male hybrid of Mallard and American Black Duck usually has some green on the head.

Sound

A raspy "quack."

»listen to songs of this species

Range

Summer Range

Eastern Canada and United States, from northeastern Manitoba through Newfoundland, southward to northern Minnesota and eastern Virginia.

Winter Range

Winters from southern Canada to Gulf Coast and northern Florida, westward to western Iowa.

Habitat

• Breeds in a variety of wetland habitats, from salt marshes to beaver ponds, river islands, and boreal bogs.
• Winters primarily in salt water along coasts, but in a variety of freshwater areas inland.

Food

Seeds, roots, stems, grain, aquatic plants, aquatic insects, crustaceans, mollusks, and some fish.

Behavior

Foraging

Dabbles. Filter-feeds at surface of water. Tips-up in shallow water. Makes occasional dives in deeper water.

Reproduction

Nest Type

Built of vegetation. Lined with down. Placed in vegetation near an edge or break in cover, sometimes on brush piles, hay rolls, or duck blinds.

Egg Description

White to greenish buff.

Clutch Size

Usually 1-17 eggs.

Condition at Hatching

Covered in down and able to leave the nest soon after hatching.

Conservation Status

American Black Duck numbers declined significantly in mid 20th century. Hunting was restricted in 1983, and populations stabilized and then started to increase. The United States and Canada started the Black Duck Joint Venture to try to restore the populations.

Other Names

Canard noir (French)
Ánade sombrio americano (Spanish)

Sources used to construct this page:

Longcore, J. R., D. G. McAuley, G. R. Hepp, and J. M. Rhymer. 2000. American Black Duck (Anas rubripes). In The Birds of North America, No. 481 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.