Musk Duck (male)

Description:

The male Musk Duck is the largest of Australia's ducks and has a powerful build. Adult males are 60 to 70 cm long and have a distinctive large, leathery lobe underneath the bill. Their drab dark grey-brown, sightly pin-striped plumage is unconspicuous and does not differ between the sexes. Musk Ducks float very low in the water, almost like a cormorant, and the large webbed feet are well back on the body.

Habitat:

This species prefers deep, still lakes and wetlands with areas of both open water and reed beds.

Notes:

Musk Ducks get their name from the strong musk odour produced from a gland on the rump. The male is decorated with a large bulbous lobe of skin hanging under his bill. This sac increases in size at the start of the breeding season. The female also has a much-reduced lobe on the underside of its bill, only visible at a short distance.