The female is similar to the male in eclipse plumage and very similar to the female mallard. The head is grey and the tail is dull. The bill has orange sides, and the legs are orange. Mallards upend in shallow water, feed from the surface, and sometimes dive. They also graze on dry land, and forage for food in fields and woodland. Goldeneyes feed mainly by diving up to depths of 4 m. They will occasionally dabble and upend in shallow water although this is usually only practised by juveniles.

The female pintail is similar to the male in eclipse plumage with streaks and a lacey pattern. The head is plain, while the bill and legs are grey. View ringing totals by area or county for the current year, sorted either alphabetically or by number ringed Redheads eat aquatic plants, pondweed, and grass. They also like to munch on snails, zebra mussels, and mayflies. The female is brown with dark streaks and brown ‘V’ shapes on the flanks. The tail is white, and the wings have the blue and white patches like the male. The head is grey with fine stripes, and the bill is brown with orange or yellow marks. Shovelers feed by swimming slowly across water, skimming the surface from side to side with its bill. It sometimes submerges its head. They often feed in groups, swimming in circles to churn up the water and bring food to the surface.Teals feed by upending, dabbling, or grazing. It may also submerge its head completely, and occasionally dives. Nesting takes place on the ground near the water’s edge. Natural nests tend to be in overhanging grass and made from anything the female can reach from her indentation of the earth. Female mallards will not carry material from anywhere else to their nest. Interestingly, mallards accept artificial nesting structures, such as homemade nests from homeowners and farmers. Mallard females lay 1-13 eggs 1-2 times each year. The cotton pygmy goose nests in tree holes, like hollowed-out trunks, during the dry season. They swim in freshwater lakes, paddy fields, and irrigation tanks.

The female is pale brown with streaks overall and a darker belly, dark eyes, and a brown to orange bill. She has a blue wing patch. In eclipse plumage, the male is similar to the female but with redder plumage, and a grey head with a white crescent on the face. In the Prairie Pothole Region, you can find the blue-winged teals in their breeding grounds in central North America. While interesting, Blue-winged teals migrate to Florida, Mexico, Central, and South America. Whether in the tundras of Canada or California, American Wigeons prefer wet meadows, wetlands, and flooded pastures for their foraging of grasses and sedges. Blue-winged Teal Robinson, R.A., Leech, D.I. & Clark, J.A. (2023) The Online Demography Report: bird ringing and nest recording in Britain & Ireland in 2022. BTO, Thetford ( http://www.bto.org/ringing-report, created on 21-September-2023) Other Features: The BTO Ringing Scheme is funded by a partnership of the British Trust for Ornithology, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (on behalf of: Natural England, Natural Resources Wales and NatureScot and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Northern Ireland)), The National Parks and Wildlife Service (Ireland) and the ringers themselves. The Nest Record Scheme is funded by the BTO and JNCC.Eurasian Wigeons breed in shallow wetlands and freshwater marshes, ponds, and lakes, surrounded by forests and tundras. Females lay an average of 7-10 eggs, preferring to nest on the ground of said forest or tundra. Nesting happens on cliff ledges in small nooks and crannies, along with holes in trees. Occasionally, a nest is on the ground. The female garganey is like the male in eclipse plumage but paler. There is an obvious white spot near the bill.

Hens lay and incubate the eggs, some drakes will guard their nest and chase away predators. Other drakes will not participate in any of the nesting processes and will instead continue migrating to their molting locations. During breeding seasons, Eurasian wigeons live in Scandinavia, the British Isles, Iceland, eastern Siberia, and northern Europe. Eurasian wigeons winter in Africa, Arabia, India, southern China, the east Atlantic islands, and the Philippines. In eclipse plumage, the male is similar to the female but rustier coloured, and with a dark green cap and eyestripe, and yellow bill.European longevity records (collated by EURING) - note these estimate the time the bird has been alive Birds use annual paths called flyways to migrate. However, scientists are not positive about how birds navigate their flyways.