From Opus

Dendrocygna arcuata

Photo by Neil
Photo taken: Newcastle, Australia.

Photo by RMD
Photo taken: Nhulunbuy NT Australia.

[edit] Identification

54-60cm. Rich red-brown plumage, long neck and legs, strong head and neck, darker crown and hindneck, black spotted breast and the feathers are mostly dark brown.

[edit] Distribution

Australia, the Philippines, Borneo, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and the Pacific Islands.

[edit] Taxonomy

Three recognized subspecies.^[1]

• D. a. arcuata
  • Philippines to Indonesia
• D. a. australis
  • Southern New Guinea to northeastern Australia
• D. a. pygmaea
  • New Britain Island on the Bismarck Archipelago

[edit] Habitat

Deep lagoons, flooded grasslands or dams. They enjoy the water and rarely leave the shore.

[edit] Behaviour

The diet includes grasses, waterlillies, water plants and occasionally insects and aquatic vertebrae.

They build a ground scrape nest not far from water, usually in high grass or a sheltered area, and 6-15 eggs are laid.

[edit] References

1. Clements, JF. 2008. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2008. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist.

[edit] External Links

• View more images of this species on the ABID