Australian Wood Duck (Maned Duck) – Chenonetta jubata Anatidae – Great Southern – Western Australia

The Australian Wood Duck has adapted to modified environments remarkably well. You are just as Australian Wood Ducks loafing at the edge of a farm dam or ornamental pond as beside a swamp, or swimming on a reservoir as on a lake, or foraging on a golf course or in green pasture as in a water meadow or grassland. They even sometimes build their nests in chimneys instead of tree hollows. This level of adaptability has allowed the species to expand its range greatly since Europeans colonised Australia.\

Description

The Australian Wood Duck is a medium-sized ‘goose-like’ duck with a dark brown head and a pale grey body with two black stripes along the back. Males have the darker head and a small dark mane, with a speckled brown-grey breast and a black lower belly and undertail. The females have a paler head with two white stripes, above and below the eye, a speckled breast and flanks, with a white lower belly and undertail. In flight, the wings are pale grey above, contrasting with black wingtips, and have a noticeable white bar on the underside (the secondaries). They walk easily on land and may be seen perching on logs and in trees. They will only take to open water when disturbed. This species is also known as the Maned Duck or the Maned Goose.

Similar Species

The Australian Wood Duck can be distinguished from pygmy geese,Nettapus spp, which are smaller, have bold white face markings and are usually seen on water. Whistling ducks, Dendrocygna spp, have longer legs and necks, larger more duck-like bills and tend to walk more upright. When flying, the Australian Wood Duck is the only duck with white secondary feathers and dark wingtips.

Distribution

The Australian Wood Duck is widespread in Australia, including Tasmania.

Habitat

The Australian Wood Duck is found in grasslands, open woodlands, wetlands, flooded pastures and along the coast in inlets and bays. It is also common on farmland with dams, as well as around rice fields, sewage ponds and in urban parks. It will often be found around deeper lakes that may be unsuitable for other waterbirds’ foraging, as it prefers to forage on land.

Feeding

The Australian Wood Duck eats grasses, clover and other herbs, and occasionally, insects. It is rarely seen on open water, preferring to forage by dabbling in shallow water, or in grasslands and crops.

Breeding

The Australian Wood Duck forms monogamous breeding pairs that stay together year round. It nests in tree holes, above or near water, often re-using the same site. Both parents feed young and young birds remain with them up to a month after fledging.

Source: http://birdlife.org.au/bird-profile/australian-wood-duck