Green Winged Teal (Anas carolinensis)
Green winged teal is a common duck, the smallest dabbling duck of North America and stays during summer in the more Northern areas of Canada. It is a strongly migratory bird, wintering in Southern USA and Mexico.
- 🇫🇷 Sarcelle à ailes vertes
- 🇩🇪 Amerikanische Krickente
- 🇲🇽 Cerceta americana
Characteristics
- Length: 38-41cm
- Weight: ♂450-500g , ♀400-450g
- Wingspan: 56-61cm
How to Identify
Although smaller than other similar ducks, size can be misleading when you are not able to compare sizes in the field. I look for males. They have a brown head with a clearly visible green eye patch. Females are more difficult to identify. A hint is the green color patch on the inner wings which you can see if the bird flies or spreads its wings.
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Where and When to Spot
I observed two females or juveniles on a pond in Newfoundland but I haven’t saved that location as the it was my first sighting and I was not 100% sure about the id. The second time, I observed a flock of green winged teal on a pond in Park Pointe-aux-Prairies. This time no doubt about the id.