General

Redhead: Medium-sized diving duck with gray back and sides, black upper back, breast, rump, and tail, and white belly. Head and neck are rufous-brown, and blue-gray bill is black-tipped; eyes are yellow. Female is pale brown overall with gray-brown back and belly; bill is gray with a black tip. Juvenile resembles female. Eclipse male is similar to breeding male but is much duller.

Range and Habitat

Redhead: Breeds in the northern prairies of the U.S. and Canada and intermountain marshes of the west. Spends winters mostly in Texas and Mexico. Nests in marshes, open lakes, and bays; often winters on saltwater.

Breeding and Nesting

Redhead: Nine to fourteen pale olive, buff, or dull white eggs are laid in a shallow cup of plant material lined with down, built in tall vegetation near water. Incubation ranges from 23 to 29 days and is carried out by the female. Sometimes lays eggs in nests of other waterbirds.

Foraging and Feeding

Redhead: Feeds on seeds, rhizomes, and tubers of pondweeds, wild celery, water lilies, grass, and wild rice; also eats mollusks, aquatic insects, and small fish; forages by diving from the water surface.

Vocalization

Redhead: Utters a cat-like "whee-uogh" or "keyair." Also makes a low, trilling "rrrrr."

Similar Species

Redhead: Canvasback is larger and has dark bill.