- Dendrocygna arcuata
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.
Distribution
Australia, the Philippines, Borneo, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and the Pacific Islands.
Taxonomy
Three recognized subspecies.[1]
- D. a. arcuata
- D. a. australis
- Southern New Guinea to northeastern Australia
- D. a. pygmaea
- New Britain Island on the Bismarck Archipelago
Habitat
Deep lagoons, flooded grasslands or dams. They enjoy the water and rarely leave the shore.
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.
References
- 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.
