Green-winged Teal Identification Guide

Key Field Marks

• Size and shape: The smallest dabbling duck in North America, about 12.5–15.5 inches long, with a small, rounded head, short neck, and compact body that give it a distinctive silhouette compared with larger dabblers.
• Male plumage: Rich chestnut head with a wide, iridescent green swath running from the eye back to the nape, a finely vermiculated gray body, a horizontal white vertical stripe on the side (in the American form), and a buffy-yellow patch under the tail bordered in black.
• Female plumage: Mottled brown overall, closely resembling other small female dabblers, but note the small size, plain gray-brown face often with a slightly paler area at the base of the bill, and a dark eye-line.
• Speculum: Both sexes show a bright green speculum (wing patch) bordered by buff or white, conspicuous in flight and sometimes visible at rest.
• Behavior: Highly gregarious, often forming large, tight flocks that fly with quick, agile, twisting maneuvers; dabbles and up-ends in shallow water and readily walks and feeds on mudflats.

Separating It From Similar Species

• Blue-winged Teal: Blue-winged Teal shows a pale blue wing patch (not green) and, in males, a bold white facial crescent; females are best told from female Green-winged Teal by larger bill size and different head shape.
• Female Mallard and other female dabblers: Green-winged Teal is much smaller and more compact, with a shorter neck and a proportionally smaller bill.
• Eurasian Teal ("Common Teal"): Regarded as a subspecies or close relative depending on taxonomy; males lack the vertical white side-stripe of the American form and instead show a horizontal white stripe along the scapulars, a key mark where the two forms overlap.
• In flight, the small size, fast wingbeats, and tight flock formations are useful supporting clues even at a distance.

Where and When to See It

• Habitat: Shallow marshes, flooded fields, mudflats, and small ponds; during migration and winter, often found on both fresh and brackish wetlands.
• Range: Breeds across northern and interior North America, including boreal Canada and Alaska; winters throughout the southern U.S., Mexico, and Central America.
• Season: A migrant and winter resident across much of the continental U.S., with breeding largely restricted to more northern latitudes in summer.

Voice and Song Cues

• Males give a clear, ringing, whistled "kreek" or bell-like note, distinctive among dabbling ducks and often given in flight or while resting on the water.
• Females give a soft, descending quack, higher-pitched and weaker than that of a Mallard.