Dendrocygna viduata

(Linnaeus, 1766)

Vernacular names
English : White-faced whistling-duck
French : Dendrocygne veuf

Classification
Class : Aves
Order : Anseriformes
Family : Anatidae
Notes : No subspecies known.

Identification
Adults can reach 45 cm in length for a weight of 820 g. Unmistakable. Black bill and legs. Brown wings, black belly, rich brown breast. Black upper neck and nape, white face and throat with black eyes. Narrow black and white barring on flanks.

Range and habitat
This species occurs from Costa Rica to Venezuela, from east Brazil to Bolivia, Paraguay, north Argentina, then in Subsaharan Africa and Madagascar. Lives in open areas wetlands, rice-fields, swamps and estuaries, up to 3000 m.

Conservation
IUCN RED LIST : LEAST CONCERN
CITES : Not Listed
Status : The species is common to abundant in parts of its range. It is heavily hunted in many African countries but remains overall safe.
Ex-Situ Programs : None known

Observation

 

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