Bird name:

Northern Pintail

Anas acutaOrder: ANSERIFORMES Family: Geese and Ducks (Anatidae)

Codes: Common Name: NOPI Scientific Name: ANAACU ITIS Taxonomic No.: 175074

Northern Pintail - The male Northern Pintail has gray and black upperparts, white neck and underparts, and gray sides. Head, throat, and nape are brown; a white stripe divides front and back of neck. Wings are gray with green speculum. Tail is black, long, and pointed. Bill,legs, and feet are gray.

Northern Pintail Female - The female Northern Pintail is mottled gray-brown overall with gray wings, plain brown head and a shorter tail.

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Northern Pintail

Northern Pintail: Large, dabbling duck. Gray and black upperparts, white neck, underparts, gray sides. Head, throat, and nape are brown; a white stripe divides front and back of neck. Gray wings have green speculum bordered with brown above and white below. Tail is black, long, and pointed.

● Song: "geee", "pruh", "prripp"

● Foraging & Feeding: Northern Pintail: Feeds primarily on vegetation, algae, seeds, and insects; forages in shallow water by dabbling.

● Breeding & nesting: Northern Pintail: Three to twelve olive green, olive buff, or cream eggs are laid in a shallow ground nest made of grass and lined with down, often some distance from water. Incubation ranges from 22 to 25 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Northern Pintail: Long-tailed Duck has white face patch.

Flight Pattern

Direct flight with rapid wing beats.

● Range & Habitat: Northern Pintail: Breeds from Alaska and Labrador south to California, Nebraska, and Maine. Spends winters south to Central America and the West Indies; also in Eurasia. Preferred habitats include marshes, prairie ponds, tundra, and sometimes salt marshes.

^BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester

^PopulationWidespread, Abundant

^MigrationMigratory

^Weight36.8 Ounces

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America