Duck Tufted Duck

A small duck with a "hairdo" on her head was called "crested duck". In the people it is sometimes called black and white, these names also to some extent describe its appearance. For a comfortable stay she needs a pond rich in vegetation. To get yourself food, this bird dives to a depth, sometimes reaching 10 meters. Therefore, it is better for it if the reservoir is deep. It produces tufted duck feeding more diverse. Under the water, the bird takes out the mollusks, which are its main food. Additionally, it eats crustaceans, small fish, insect larvae. In hungry times, do not disdain to use plants as an additive to the basic diet. Take this duck to diving, she dives quickly, but it takes off heavily and only after running up the water.

Where does he live

Inhabits crested duck in Karelia, as well as the Kola Peninsula and the Far East. Its nests pass in Bashkortostan, Trans-Ural, Northern Siberia, Northern Kazakhstan, Middle Transvolga. She also lives in London, where she willingly settles in urban ponds. Often the wintering grounds of these birds are located near the northern part of France, Germany, Belgium, Holland. Most prefer to spend the cold season at sea. They can be found in Morocco, Egypt, off the coast of the Black and Azov Seas. Even in Vietnam, India, Iraq, Japan are familiar with these representatives of the fauna.

Looks like

Hunters well see this duck on the water, thanks to the bright plumage of the male, and is distinguished from other species by the tuft on the head. The female looks more homely than her "spouse". Instead of black plumage, it has a brownish-red, and the decoration on her head is smaller. The male, on the contrary, has a contrasting white-black plumage and a large crest. His eyes are yellow, his beak is blue, his paws are gray. Hunting for this bird is reluctant, since its meat is inferior in taste to meat of other representatives of this species of birds - it gives away fish or has a fatty taste. But if you managed to get it, then you can use both fluff and feather. There are regions where it is mined in large quantities. On the hunt most often used stuffed and special whistles, with the help of which imitate the cry of the duck.

Nesting

Crested stubble always creates a strong pair, in which ducks keep fidelity to each other throughout their lives. In order to "meet" the lady of his heart, the male performs a wedding dance, during which he wings his wings and throws back his head. Tufted duck arranges nests near the water. For this, islets are suitable islets or floating heaps of reeds or branches, sometimes they settle in hollows of trees. Tufted duck, the photo of which is presented in this article, uses dry grass or fresh stems and leaves to arrange the nest. The place for the house can be wet. In this case, a nest with a duck, will resemble a bowl with sides 9-10 centimeters high. If the place is dry, then the bird digs a hole to hide the masonry, and covers it from the top down. In this nest, the offspring of a happy couple appear. Eggs of crested blackness of olive color, have about 5 cm in diameter, in one clutch of them from 9 to 13 pieces.

Bright kids

She cares for the future and already proklyunuvshimisya chicks female. The male does not help her to care for her offspring. Incubation lasts 25-26 days. Ducklings, like other representatives of this species of birds, are initially covered in down. But they do not have to stay long in one place. Already a day after the birth, they are led by the mother-duck to the water and even try to dive. Usually crested duck begins to nest in May, and the offspring appears in June-July. Kids, although they have a few days off, already know how to hide among water plants, coastal thickets and roots, to escape from danger. Moreover, the mother protects them from a sudden attack, diverting the attention of the enemy to themselves, rising into the air and quacking. The family will be together until the ducklings in August begin to be covered with real feathers. Adults at this time will shed. They will completely get rid of old feathers and acquire new ones. After this, the pack prepares for a long flight, which lasts from September to November, depending on the place of nesting.

Do not kill this small bird. Moreover, there is little good in such production. Small in weight and tasteless crested duck is more suitable for breeding in urban conditions to improve the aesthetic appearance of water bodies, besides, it is not afraid of neighborhood with a person.