Cotton Pygmy Goose - BirdForum Opus

Alternative names: White Pygmy-goose, White Dwarf-goose, White-quilled Pygmy-goose, White-quilled Dwarf-goose, Indian Pygmy-goose, Australian Pygmy-goose, Cotton Teal.

Nominate subspecies male in full breeding plumage
Photo © by Alok Tewari
Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, July-2016

Nettapus coromandelianus

Identification

Nominate subspecies breeding pair
Photo © by Alok Tewari
Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, July-2016

30–38 cm (11¾-15 in)
Breeding Male

• Glossy black-green crown
• White head
• White neck
• White below
• Black collar
• White wing bar
• Green wings
  

Female

• Paler
• Lacks black collar
  

Eclipse male

• Similar to female
• White wing bar

Distribution

Subspecies N. c. albipennis female
Photo © by Mat & Cathy
Queensland, Australia, January 2007

Asia and Australasia
Asia: Afghanistan, China, Nepal, Pakistan, India, Eastern and Western Himalayas, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh
Southeast Asia: Indochina, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Malay Peninsula, Singapore, Philippines, Borneo, Indonesia, Greater Sundas, Sumatra, Java and Sulawesi
Australasia: Papua New Guinea, Australia: New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria and Melanesia

Taxonomy

Subspecies

There are 2 subspecies:¹

• N. c. coromandelianus
  • Lowlands of India, southern Asia, Indonesia, and New Guinea
• N. c. albipennis
  • Lowlands of coastal northeastern Australia

Habitat

Freshwater marshes, well vegetated ponds, lakes, lagoons and creeks.

Behaviour

Diet

A dabbling duck, they forage for seeds, grass and aquatic plants and will also eat insects.

Breeding

The clutch of 8-15 ivory eggs is laid in the nest which is made in a tree hole, lined with feathers and grass.

Gallery

Click on photo for larger image

• 

  Nominate subspecies juvenile
  Photo © by ariban
  Barkheda, Jaipur District, Rajasthan, India, October 2015

• 

  Nominate subspecies
  Photo © by bambuza
  North of Thailand, January 2010

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2018. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2018. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved November 2015)
3. Wikipedia

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Cotton Pygmy Goose. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 11 September 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Cotton_Pygmy_Goose

External Links

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