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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 common pochard [2] (/ ˈ p ɒ tʃ ər d /; Aythya ferina), known simply as pochard in the United Kingdom, is a medium-sized diving duck in the family Anatidae. It is widespread across the Palearctic. It breeds primarily in the steppe regions of Scandinavia and Siberia, and winters further south and west.
The greater scaup (Aythya marila), just scaup in Europe or, colloquially, "bluebill" in North America, [3] is a mid-sized diving duck, larger than the closely related lesser scaup and tufted duck. It spends the summer months breeding in Iceland, east across Scandinavia, northern Russia and Siberia, Alaska, and northern Canada.
Aythya is a genus of diving ducks, with twelve species currently accepted. [2] The genus was described in 1822 by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie, with the type species being greater scaup. [3] [4] The name Aythya comes from the Ancient Greek word αἴθυιᾰ (aithuia), which referred to an unknown diving-bird. [5] [6]
The ring-necked duck (Aythya collaris) is a diving duck from North America commonly found in freshwater ponds and lakes. [3] The scientific name is derived from Greek aithuia , an unidentified seabird mentioned by authors including Hesychius and Aristotle , and Latin collaris , "of the neck" from collum , "neck".
The North American Waterfowl Management Plan for redheads is 760,000 North American birds. [13] The population size has increased in the past few decades to well over 1.4 million birds. [6] Redheads make up 2% of North America's duck population and only 1% of its harvested ducks. [13]
The New Zealand scaup is a diving duck which dives to look for aquatic plants, small fish, water snails, mussels and insects. [ 14 ] [ 13 ] It is sometimes seen with the Australian coot ( Fulica atra ); it is thought that the scaup takes advantage of the food stirred up by the coots as they fossick for shrimps. [ 13 ]
The red-crested pochard (Netta rufina) is a large diving duck. The scientific name is derived from Greek Netta "duck", and Latin rufina , "golden-red" (from rufus , "ruddy"). [ 2 ] Its breeding habitat is lowland marshes and lakes in southern Europe and it extends from the steppe and semi-desert areas on the Black Sea to Central Asia and ...