Bird of the Week

This week’s Bird of the Week, compliments of the Weminuche Audubon Society and Audubon Rockies, is the green-winged teal. Along with mallards, pintails, wigeons, gadwalls and wood ducks, teal species are members of the group known as puddle ducks. Of these, the green-winged teal is the smallest in North America. These dabbling ducks locate food by tipping up rather than by diving, and feed in shallow waters like those found in flooded fields and wetlands. Closely spaced comblike projections, lamellae, which line the inside edges of their bills, allow these ducks to filter food from the water. They strain out tiny invertebrates, including insect larvae, from the surface of the water, and tip up to reach those that are submerged. Seeds of grasses and sedges are also a part of their diet. More than any other duck, these teal feed along mudflats found at the edges of small ponds. They often rest out of the water on low snags or branches close by. They are fast, agile flyers that can take off straight out of the water when disturbed. Flocks maneuver in unison, twisting and turning while flashing their deep green wing patches. Hardy green-winged teal are common and widespread across North America, and they winter farther north than other teal species. As long as there is open water, when other shallow water areas are frozen they are found here in winter hanging out in the warm water ponds along the Riverwalk and in the river. In late fall and winter, males court mates with elaborate movements and vocal displays. If you listen, you can hear males giving their whistled peeps and females quacking. Mated pairs move north to breeding grounds together, preferring wooded ponds over the prairie potholes used by other dabblers. With chestnut-colored heads and broad, bright green stripes behind the eyes, male green-winged teal are showy birds. A vertical white stripe on the side is a visible identification mark. Females are mottled brown with the creamy patch shown by both sexes at the tail. These teal are just one of the waterfowl species that we hope to be able to include in our waterfowl count on the Dec. 14 Christmas Bird Count in Pagosa Springs. For information on events, visit www.weminucheaudubon.org and www.facebook.com/weminucheaudubon/.