Tag Archives: Mandarin Duck

Paintbrush Birds – Mandarin Duck

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Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) by

Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) by Dan

Description and Details

The Mandarin Duck is definitely one of Our Creator’s Masterpieces, far as I’m concerned. I love my local Wood Ducks, but this duck is absolutely one of my favorites! My first glimpse of the Mandarin Ducks was at the Miami Zoo, now Zoo Miami, years ago. They have such clean lines and details that were and are just breathtaking! Later we viewed them many times at the Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa, now Zoo Tampa.

Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) Zoo Miami by Lee

Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) Zoo Miami by Lee

“In the wild, mandarin ducks breed in densely wooded areas near shallow lakes, marshes or ponds. They nest in cavities in trees close to water and during the spring, the females lay their eggs in the tree’s cavity after mating. A single clutch of nine to twelve eggs is laid in April or May. Although the male may defend the brooding female and his eggs during incubation, he himself does not incubate the eggs and leaves before they hatch. Shortly after the ducklings hatch, their mother flies to the ground and coaxes the ducklings to leap from the nest. After all of the ducklings are out of the tree, they will follow their mother to a nearby body of water.

Mandarins feed by dabbling or walking on land. They mainly eat plants and seeds, especially beech mast. The species will also add snails, insects and small fish to its diet. The diet of mandarin ducks changes seasonally; in the fall and winter, they mostly eat acorns and grains. In the spring, they mostly eat insects, snails, fish and aquatic plants. In the summer, they eat dew worms, small fish, frogs, mollusks, and small snakes. They feed mainly near dawn or dusk, perching in trees or on the ground during the day.” (Wikipedia with editing)
 

The Mandarin Duck has been featured before, and some of those articles are linked below. I rediscovered this video that I took at the Zoo:

Great Verses:

“And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.” (Genesis 2:2-3 KJV)

“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the LORD, The Creator of the ends of the earth, Neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable.” (Isaiah 40:28 NKJV)

 

Mandarin Ducks Together ©Elenarts
Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) by Dan at Zoo Miami
Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) Zoo Miami by Lee
Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) Zoo Miami by Lee
Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) Zoo Miami by Lee
Mandarin Duck LPZoo
Mandarin Duck LPZoo
Mandarin Duck LPZoo
Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) by S Slayton
Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) by Dan
Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) by Dan

Previous Posts about the Mandarin Duck:

Gideon

Mandarin Duck Pair at Zoo Miami

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While working on the Life List of All the Birds We Have Seen, I came across this video and decided to share it. We were at the Wings of Asia Aviary at Zoo Miami.

“When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.” (Psalms 8:3-5 KJV)

“The Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) is a perching duck species found in East Asia. It is medium-sized, at 41–49 cm (16–19 in) long with a 65–75 cm (26–30 in) wingspan. It is closely related to the North American wood duck, the only other member of the genus Aix. Aix is an Ancient Greek word which was used by Aristotle to refer to an unknown diving bird, and galericulata is the Latin for a wig, derived from galerum, a cap or bonnet.

The adult male has a red bill, large white crescent above the eye and reddish face and “whiskers”. The breast is purple with two vertical white bars, and the flanks ruddy, with two orange “sails” at the back. The female is similar to female wood duck, with a white eye-ring and stripe running back from the eye, but is paler below, has a small white flank stripe, and a pale tip to its bill.

Both the males and females have crests, but the crest is more pronounced on the male.

Like many other species of ducks, the male undergoes a moult after the mating season into eclipse plumage. When in eclipse plumage, the male looks similar to the female, but can be told apart by their bright yellow-orange beak, lack of any crest, and a less-pronounced eye-stripe.”[Wikipedia]

Life List of All the Birds We Have Seen – Part I

Life List of All the Birds We Have Seen