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Aix galericulata

Male (right) and female (left)
Photo by Marc Delsalle
Ieper, Belgium

[edit] Identification

[edit] Distribution

An East Asian duck breeding in the far east of Russia, in north-eastern China and Hokkaido. A summer visitor to northern parts of breeding range wintering in southern Japan and eastern China. Has been recorded south to the Ryukyu Islands and Taiwan.

Introduced and now well established in Britain with the main breeding areas are in southern England in Surrey, Berkshire and neighbouring counties but sporadic breeding occurs throughout England and around Perth in Scotland. In addition there are small and scattered breeding populations in Ireland. Has bred or breeds regularly in small numbers in various other European countries including France, Belgium and the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway, Austria, Germany and Switzerland but these populations may not yet be self-supporting.

Local escapes or wanderers from England have been seen throughout Europe north to Iceland and south to Spain, also in Morocco.

As the native Asian birds continue to decline through persecution and habitat loss the British population has become increasingly important and there may now be more birds in Britain than in China.

[edit] Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species^[1].

[edit] Habitat

In its homeland a bird of lakes and rivers in forested regions, marshes and more open waters in winter. In Britain it is found on lakes and streams in parkland farmland with nearby deciduous woodland.

[edit] Behaviour

[edit] References

1. Clements, JF. 2009. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2009. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.

• List of references

[edit] External Links