DUCKS

Black-bellied Whistling Duck (Seen in The Woodlands, TX)
Black-bellied Whistling Ducks - Their high-pitched whistle gives them their name. Here we have the entire choir whistling a tune! These handsome ducks, a tropical species (Mexico and Central America) have been moving farther north in Texas. They form long-term bonds.
  (Juveniles) Black-bellied Whistling Ducks mostly like to nest in trees. Just one day after they hatch, the ducklings jump out of the nest, and head for water with their mom!

Blue-winged Teal
Blue-winged male Teal in breeding plumage (note the blue-gray head and the wide white crescent in front of the eye), male Blue-winged Teal (breeding season), male & female
Blue-winged Teal, female The male looks much like the female when they arrive in our South Texas area in the fall. The difference is that the female has soft quacking sounds, and the male has a large peeping/twittering repertoire.
Cinnamon Teal
 
The male Cinnamon Teal is easy to identify during breeding season - his head, neck and underparts are a bright cinnamon-red. The female, however, looks very much like the female blue-winged teal. How can you tell them apart? Wait until breeding season, and then notice with whom they are swimming!!  
Canvas-backed Duck
 
   
Mallard Duck (Seen in The Woodlands, TX)
Mallard, male Mallard, female
Mallard eggs - the female lays on the eggs after they have all been laid, thus assuring that they all hatch at the same time!
Lesser Scaup
Lesser Scaup, male Lesser Scaup, female
Muscovy (domestic) (Seen in The Woodlands, TX)
   
 
   
Wood Duck (Seen in The Woodlands, TX)
Wood Duck - I think God rested after he created this gorgeous bird! What a sight!! These ducks were nearly wiped out at the turn of the century, when their feathers were used for everything from ladies' hats to artificial trout flies.  They were placed under federal protection in 1918,
Wood Ducks, male and female. 
Notice her distinctive eye.		 Wood Duck family.  The wood duck builds her nest in tree cavities. Soon after they hatch, the tiny ducklings stand in the entry, then drop to earth unharmed!