Northern Duck Sviyaz

Northern beauty duck Sviyaz is easily distinguishable from other wild relatives, due to its memorable appearance. Even once looking at the photo, it will be easy to recognize it when meeting face to face. But this bird has other features, which will also be discussed.

Description

General characteristic

I would like to start with the main distinguishing characteristic of Sviyaz – sv a yellow stripe extending from the beak to the back of the head. White transverse stripes also extend along the long wings.

The Duckweed is a large bird with an average body length of about 50 cm and a weight of up to 1 kg males and up to 700 g – in females. The wingspan is 70-85 cm. The feathered head is small, its neck is short and its steep forehead is rather high. The body is stocky, spindle-shaped. The tail and wings are clearly sharpened at the ends.

Coloring

As expected, the plumage of the male is much brighter than the outfit of the female. His head is brown-red in color with a strip, which was mentioned at the beginning. Brown eyes with a green speck on top. The body itself is gray, but the belly is white.On the gray breast, a pinkish or reddish underton of the pen, black sides, and the area of ​​the suprapoxis are noticeable. The wing mirror is saturated green with a purple overflow.

Beak is black at the end, but the main part is gray-blue. Gray legs usually have a yellow or brown hue.

“Female half” is less presentable: the plumage of its dirty brown color with a red tint, sometimes it can also be gray. Young growth looks exactly the same.

Voice

Another feature that the duck Sviyaz possesses is her voice. It is quite specific, resembles a smooth whistle. Frightened individuals whistle especially sharply. Hence the name Sviyaz.

In response to the whistling calls of the drake, the ducks simply muffled quack.

Interesting facts

In the coastal meadows and In the salt marshes, these feathered ones are the most common and numerous of all wild ducks. It is typical for Sviyazey to unite with flocks of big birds: swans, pintails, black geese. Together with them, they can easily graze in meadows near ponds.

By taste characteristics, Sviyaz meat stands out among all game. In connection with this fact, these birds are caught in large numbers during wintering periods when they sit in large groups.

It happens that ducks sleep during the day, sitting on the waves and swaying peacefully.

Besides the name Sviyaz You can meet people like Svistun and Sviyaga – all this is about the same bird.By the way, in Germany they call it that – “whistling duck”. In England, they call it “half-breed,” since in the 19th century it went only half the price of the usual cost of a duck in the markets: it was considered too small. Once the British called her “simpleton.” This nickname was fixed by hunters, for whom it was easier to catch Sviyaz.

Where they live

The endless northern expanses are home to these birds, however the winter duck Sviyaz flies away to places with milder climates: to South Asia, Indochina, Africa, the Mediterranean.

Most duck populations can be found in:

• Russia (Kamchatka, the Sea of ​​Okhotsk, Palearctic, Baikal , Altai Mountains, Northern Caucasus);
• Finland;
• Scandinavia.

They also fly over the coasts of the Arctic, Iceland and. They nest much less frequently in the European part of Russia.

They inhabit the forest-tundra, taiga, and forest-steppe. The territory of their residence assumes the presence of dense vegetation and small reservoirs (swamps, lakes, backwaters with a muddy bottom, flooded fields). Such preferences are directly related to their nutritional needs.

Flocks in winter spend their days in estuaries and sea bays of warm regions.

Lifestyle

Character and habits

Sviyaz bird is inherent to be careful, but in general these are incredibly friendly creatures. Their daily routine consists mainly of earning a living.

These are collective ducks, in flocks they make off-season flights, stick together almost all the time, except for the breeding season. They can easily be captured in a photo gathered in a group of tens of hundreds of individuals.

Their flight is easy and fast. They easily rise from the surface of the water, uplift upright and quickly return back. They don’t have a tendency to dive, they are uncomfortable under water, but they move freely overgrown meadows and other surfaces.

Food

The basis of the Sviyaz diet is plant food: seeds, shoots, duckweed, algae, rhizomes, sea rupee, cereals. It is almost a vegetarian. The structure of his beak is such that he simply cannot catch fish for himself, although he will be able to catch small insects flying or crawling past them (worms, locusts, etc.).

Reproduction

The mating season

Duck Sviyaz becomes sexually mature by the first year of life. Birds are steaming either when they are preparing to fly to winter in hot countries, or when making a flight. They are characterized by monogamy.

Flirting with them is relatively calm. The drake takes a place near the duck that attracted him, defiantly dissolving feathers. All the others, in turn, understand that a couple has formed in the flock.

When hovering, Sviyazi whistle especially loudly. From the end of May to June egg laying is carried out.

Nesting

On the shoulders, or rather wings, the females lay down the task of arranging the nest. She chooses a place, usually near water, digs a shallow hole and forms her future roost.

Sviyazi managed to stand out here too. They build their nests not from branches, like most wild ducks, but immediately choose places with dried grass or thickets that can only be covered with their own down.

The duck hatches many eggs: from 6 to 10 pieces 50 mm in size, this the process is about 25 days. Males during this period guard their family and leave it only when molting occurs.

Offspring

The first day, newborn ducklings sit in their native nest. After – they leave after mom to the water. They are very mobile, move quickly, swim and dive. On their 45th day they make their first flights.