Ring-necked Duck - BirdForum Opus

Male. Photo by Leslie
Location Oak Park, California

Identification

When in flight, both male and female shows a grey stripe on flight feathers.

Grey bill with white band
Black head which when breeding looks shiny purple
Highest point of head far behind eye
White belly
Yellow eyes
Back looks black in the field
White "spur" between breast and sides
Field guides mention a cinnamon-colored ring around the neck that probably can only be seen in the hand

Female. Photo by eastwood
Location Reifel Bird Sanctuary Delta, British Columbia,

The very similar Tufted Duck shows white in the wing. The Lesser Scaup is darker overall, and has no eye ring.

Breeds in Canada and north west United States; mostly vacates breeding area in winter, migrating to southern USA and Central America, being rare but regular in Panama and a vagrant in South America. Occurs as a vagrant with some regularity in Europe^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5].

This is a monotypic species^[1].

Breeding on freshwater marches, wooded lakes, rivers and ponds, also found in coastal habitats in winter.

Includes aquatic plants, invertebrates, and small fish.

The nest is found on dry land but near water. It is bowl-shaped, built with aquatic vegetation and lined with down. The female lays 8 to 10 eggs.

Clements, James F. 2007. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to October 2007. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. ISBN 9780801445019
Restall et al. 2006. Birds of Northern South America. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300124156
Ridgely & Gwynne 1989. Birds of Panama. Princeton Paperbacks. ISBN 0691025126
Beaman, M., S. Madge, K.M. Olsen. 1998. Fuglene i Europa, Nordafrika og Mellemøsten. Copenhagen, Denmark: Gads Forlag, ISBN 87-12-02276-4
National Geographic Society. 1987. Field Guide to the Birds of North America. Washington DC: National Geographic Society.
Wikipedia