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The diving ducks, commonly called pochards or scaups, are a category of duck which feed by diving beneath the surface of the water. They are part of Anatidae, the diverse and very large family that includes ducks, geese, and swans. The diving ducks are placed in a distinct tribe in the subfamily Anatinae, the Aythyini.
The mallard has hybridised with more than 40 species in the wild, and an additional 20 species in captivity, [13] though fertile hybrids typically have two Anas parents. [14] Mallards and their domestic conspecifics are fully interfertile; many wild mallard populations in North America contain significant amounts of domestic mallard DNA. [15] [16]
Mallard: Anas platyrhynchos: Anatidae: 6,400 metres (21,000 feet) This height was recorded over Nevada; [1] [4] [5] This record occurred when a Lockheed L-188 Electra turboprop airliner operating a Western Airlines flight suffered a bird strike at cruising altitude. [8] Bar-tailed godwit: Limosa lapponica: Scolopacidae: 6,000 metres (20,000 ...
How do they do it? Hummingbirds are designed to hover. About 30% of their total body weight (compared to just 5% in humans) is dedicated to their breast muscles (which power the wings).
In the southern hemisphere, the directions are reversed, but there is less land area in the far south to support long-distance migration. [16] The primary motivation for migration appears to be food; for example, some hummingbirds choose not to migrate if fed through the winter. [17]
Most hummingbirds migrate in the winter to Central America or Mexico, but some hummingbirds spend the winter on the Gulf Coast and may be found in South Texas and South Louisiana during mild winters.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: When do hummingbirds leave Iowa? Here's when they'll migrate south Here's when they'll migrate south Show comments
A few hundred species migrate long distances, in some cases of thousands of kilometres. About 120 species of fish, including several species of salmon, migrate between saltwater and freshwater (they are 'diadromous'). [23] [24] Forage fish such as herring and capelin migrate around substantial parts of the North Atlantic ocean.