Red-Crested Pochard

Netta rufina

Family:

Ducks, geese and swans

Length:

53cm to 57cm

Wingspan:

85cm to 80cm

Weight:

900g to 1.4kg

About the Red-Crested Pochard

The red-crested pochard is a diving duck that is slightly larger than a pochard in size. Males have a head that is orange and brown, pale flanks and a red beaks. Females have pale cheeks and are brown all over.

The breeding population in the UK has most certainly all come from escaped birds, but occasional wild birds do come from Europe over to the UK. In Europe, Spain has a large population. France, Germany and the Netherlands have good number of red-crested pochards, but much smaller populations than Spain.

What does a Red-Crested Pochard eat?

Their diets consist of roots, stems and seeds of aquatic vegetation.

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Other birds in the Ducks, geese and swans family

Wigeon

Whooper Swan

This large bird arrives on our shores from Iceland to overwinter in late September, returning northwards to breed from mid March onwards.

White-Fronted Goose

Velvet Scoter

Larger than the Common Scoter this elegant European diving duck spends much of its time at sea and is often seen in company with mixed flocks resting on the water’s surface far out from land.

Tundra Bean Goose

Tufted Duck

A type of diving duck, distinguished by its mohican-like feathers at back of head.

Teal

Taiga Bean Goose

Snow Goose

Smew

Shoveler

Shelduck

Scaup

Ruddy Duck

Red-Breasted Merganser

Pochard

During the winter the population of this rare resident breeding duck increases by 55 times to that of the summer, with the influx of many thousands of others overwintering, having arrived from Russia and Eastern Europe.

Pintail

Pink-Footed Goose

Mute Swan

Mandarin Duck

A native of Japan and China, the mandarin duck was first introduced into the UK in the 18th century and started populations in the wild in the 1930’s following escapes from captivity. The UK population is estimated to be in the region of 7,000 birds.

Mallard

Long-Tailed Duck

Greylag Goose

Merganser

Widespread throughout the northern hemisphere, the common merganser is the largest of the saw billed fish eating ducks. There are three sub-species with the Eurasian variant frequently known as the Goosander.

Goldeneye

Garganey

Gadwall

Eider

Egyptian Goose

Regarded as being sacred by early Egyptians, this native goose of the African continent was introduced into Europe and elsewhere as an ornamental wildfowl species in the late seventeenth and eighteenth century.

Common Scoter

The word scoter is often used to define northern sea ducks. There are six different species of scoter, all of which are monotypic and three of which are confined to North America. The Common Scoter like the Velvet Scoter can only be found in Europe and Asia whilst the Stejneger’s Scoter is a native of Asia alone.

Canada Goose

This large bodied goose is both adaptable and social having been imported into Europe and Asia from its native lands in North America. A monogamous bird which pairs for life, it is considered a pest in some areas as being both messy and aggressive, particularly within urban environments.