< Back | Name: | Redhead | | Family: | Diving Ducks | | Scientific Name:
| Aythya americana | | Description: | Male redheads are gray with a black chest and a red head. Females are brown all over. Both sexes have a bluish bill with a light strip across the bottom and a black tip. | | Habit: | They feed on plants, seeds, snails and insect larvae in natural or man-made open-water wetlands. Redheads commonly nest in western North America from Alaska east and south to Iowa. Females lay 7-10 eggs in nests made near permanent prairie wetlands. Hens are notorious for laying their eggs in other ducks’ nests. | |
State Occurrence:
| Found throughout the state during winter – most common on large reservoirs or along major river systems. |
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Click Photo to Enlarge USFWS Female and male |
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