Northern Shoveler

Description:

Male northern shovelers have an iridescent green head and neck, white chest and breast and chestnut belly and sides. They have a white stripe extending from the breast along the margin of the gray-brown back, and white flank spots. The wings have a gray-blue shoulder patch, which is separated from a brilliant green speculum by a tapered white stripe. The bill is black in breeding plumage and the legs and feet are orange. During display, males will utter a repeated, liquid, hollow "g-dunk g-dunk g-dunk" in flight as well as from water. Female northern shovelers have a light brownish head with a blackish crown and a brownish speckled body. The upper wing coverts are grayish-blue, the greater secondary coverts are tipped with white and the secondaries are brown with a slight greenish sheen. The bill is olive green with fleshy orange in the gape area and speckled with black dots.

Habitat:

The Sweetwater Wetlands is a water treatment facility, an urban wildlife habitat, and an outdoor classroom. As a water treatment facility, it is one of the most important facets of the City's Reclaimed Water System. Treated water filters through sediments beneath recharged basins and replenishes the local aquifer. This reclaimed wastewater is recovered by extraction wells during periods of high water demand and distributed for reuse in Tucson's golf courses, parks, schools and other large turf irrigation areas. As an urban wildlife habitat, the Sweetwater Wetlands is a tranquil park where visitors can view native wildlife in an urban setting. This water-rich streamside riparian zone supports a huge variety of wildlife including dragonflies, raccoons, hawks, bobcats and dozens of other species that make the wetlands their full- or part-time home. As an outdoor classroom, the Sweetwater Wetlands provides an environmental, educational experience in natural laboratory settings for teaching about ecology and water resource management. The wetlands helps establish and enhance the wildlife population in harmony with Tucson's urban environment.

Notes:

Puddle ducks are typically birds of fresh, shallow marshes and rivers rather than of large lakes and bays. They are good divers, but usually feed by dabbling or tipping rather than by submerging. Any duck feeding in croplands will likely be a puddle duck, for most of this group are surefooted and can walk and run well on land. Their diet consists of mostly vegetable.