Week 25 – Ruddy Duck

 

Male Ruddy Duck performing ‘bubbling display’ to a female. Photograph by Neil Paprocki.

The more I learn about Ruddy Ducks, the more I become enthralled with their behavior and anatomy. I watched several male Ruddy Ducks display to females over the weekend. Note the bubbles formed at the waters surface near this male’s chest during his courtship display. Some fascinating facts about Ruddy Ducks:

• Females lay the largest eggs relative to body size of all waterfowl.
• Males perform elaborate courtship displays on the breeding grounds to attract females.
• Males have the largest intromittent organ (effectively a penis) relative to body size of all waterfowl.
• The male intromittent organ can be longer than 15 cm and posses several spines or knobs.

I took this picture at the Hyatt Wetlands in Boise, Idaho. These are a man-made wetlands complex in the middle of suburbia meant to increase bird habitat and filter storm water before it pours into the Boise River.

All of the previous 52-week blog posts can be found at the Wild Lens blog or on Flickr.

Citation: Brua, Robert B. 2002. Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Ithaca: Cornell Lab of Ornithology; Retrieved from the Birds of North America Online:http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/696