Ducks at a Distance
A Waterfowl Identification Guide

By
Bob Hines
Department of the Interior
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service
GIF -- Cover Picture

Identification is Important

Identifying waterfowl gives many hours of enjoyment to millions of people. This guide will help you recognize birds on the wing - it emphasizes their fall and winter plumage patterns as well as size, shape, and flight characteristics. It does not include local names.Recognizing the species of ducks and geese can be rewarding to birdwatchers and hunters - and the ducks.

Hunters can contribute to their own sport by not firing at those species that are either protected or scarce, and needed as breeders to restore the flocks. It can add to their daily limit; when extra birds of certain species can be taken legally, hunters who know their ducks on the wing come out ahead. Knowing a mallard from a merganser has another side: gourmets prefer a corn-fed mallard to the fish duck.

This edition of Ducks at a Distance is a cooperative effort by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and Southwest Natural and Cultural Heritage Association. Published by Southwest Natural and Cultural Heritage Association, Drawer E, Albuquerque, NM 87103.

Where can I get a printed version of Ducks at a Distance?

This resource is based on the following source:

Hines, Robert W.  No Date.  Ducks at a distance: A waterfowl identification
     guide.  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Southwest Natural and Cultural 
     Heritage Association, Albuquerque, NM.  51pp.

This resource should be cited as:

Hines, Robert W.  No Date.  Ducks at a distance: A waterfowl identification
     guide.  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Southwest Natural and Cultural 
     Heritage Association, Albuquerque, NM.  Jamestown, ND: Northern Prairie 
     Wildlife Research Center Online.  
     http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/tools/duckdist/index.htm
     (Version 04NOV97).

Dedication to Robert W. Hines
What to Look For
Eclipse Plumage
Puddle Ducks: Mallard; Pintail; Gadwall; American Wigeon; Shoveler; Blue-winged Teal; Cinnamon Teal; Green-winged Teal; Wood Duck; Black Duck
Diving Ducks, Geese and Swans: Canvasback; Redhead; Ring-necked Duck; Lesser Scaup; Goldeneye; Bufflehead; Ruddy Duck; Red-Breasted Merganser; Common Merganser; Hooded Merganser; Whistling Ducks; Scoters; Common Eider; Oldsquaw; Harlequin; Swans; Canada Geese; Brant; Snow Geese; White-fronted Geese
Comparative Sizes of Some Water Birds
Wetlands Attract Wildlife
Administrative Waterfowl Flyways

Downloading Instructions -- Instructions on downloading and extracting files from this site.

duckdist.zip (1.6M) -- Ducks at a Distance -- A Waterfowl Identification Guide Installation: Extract all files and open index.htm in a web browser.

Ducks at a Distance A Waterfowl Identification Guide

Identification is Important

Contents

Ducks at a Distance
A Waterfowl Identification Guide