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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 tufted duck (or tufted pochard) (Aythya fuligula) is a small diving duck with a population of close to one million birds, found in northern Eurasia. They are partially migratory. They are partially migratory.
Ruddy ducks mainly feed on a large amount of plant matter like seeds and roots as well as aquatic insects and crustaceans. A large portion of the animal matter consumed is larvae and pupae. [9] [18] During the winter, they often consume a higher amount of animal food. The food foraged is done underwater, an activity that the ruddy duck excels at.
The redhead is a pochard, a diving duck specially adapted to foraging underwater. Their legs are placed further back on the body, which makes walking on land difficult. The webbing on their feet is larger than dabbling ducks and their bills are broader to facilitate underwater foraging.
Red-breasted mergansers dive and swim underwater. They mainly eat small fish, ... The fastest duck ever recorded was a red-breasted merganser that attained a top ...
A male mallard duck. Subfamily: Aythyinae, diving ducks (Some 15 species of diving ducks, of worldwide distribution, in two to four genera; The 1986 morphological analysis [10] suggested the probably extinct pink-headed duck of India, previously treated separately in Rhodonessa, should be placed in Netta, but this has been questioned. [15]
As diving ducks, their bodies are specialized for being agile underwater swimmers and thus have sacrificed the characteristics that allow them to move well on land. As a result, their legs are set further back on their bodies which makes them awkward when walking out of water.
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]