Northern Pintail Duck

Description:

Northern pintails are long, slender ducks with long, narrow wings. Pintails are named for their elongated central tail feathers, which constitute one-fourth of the drake's body length. Male northern pintails have a chocolate-brown head with a white stripe on each side of the neck extending up from the white breast and belly. The back is blackish-gray and the rump has a white patch on each side. Two of the long central tail feathers are black while the others are gray margined by white.The bill is blue-gray with a black stripe along the center to the tip, and the legs and feet are slate-gray. Female northern pintails have a dark-brown upper body with a buff or gray head and lower body. The bill is blue-gray blotched with black, and the legs and feet are slate-gray. (Thanks to: http://www.ducks.org/hunting/waterfowl-i...)

Habitat:

Santragachi Jheel...a freshwater Lake near the Santragachi railway station.

Notes:

Photo one shows a male. The female can be seen in the second photo...in the centre at the back.These birds are called greyhounds of the air (http://www.ducks.org/hunting/waterfowl-i...)