Ruddy Duck Identification Guide

Key Field Marks

• Small, dumpy diving duck with a large head, thick neck, and a stiff, often upturned tail that is frequently cocked vertically while resting or displaying.
• Breeding male: rich chestnut-red body, black cap extending to just above the eye, contrasting white cheek patch, and a bright sky-blue bill.
• Nonbreeding male and female: dull grayish-brown overall, with a dusky cap and a pale cheek crossed by a single dark line (female) or a plainer pale cheek (nonbreeding male); bill dark gray, not blue.
• Wings are short and plain, rarely seen in flight since the species prefers to dive or swim away from disturbance.

Separating It From Similar Species

• The stocky shape, oversized head, and stiff cocked tail separate Ruddy Duck from all regularly occurring dabbling and diving ducks at a glance.
• Masked Duck, a rare stray from the tropics, is smaller with a shorter bill and, in the male, a black face mask rather than a white cheek patch; females of both species are similar but Masked Duck shows bolder facial striping and a smaller size.
• Female/nonbreeding male Ruddy Ducks can be told from other small brown ducks by the combination of stiff tail, big head, and single dark cheek line.

Where and When to Look

• Breeds on prairie potholes, marshes, and reedy ponds across much of the western and central United States and Canada.
• Winters widely on coastal bays, estuaries, reservoirs, and open lakes across the southern and coastal United States, Mexico, and parts of Central America.
• Look for dense rafts of Ruddy Ducks on open water in fall and winter, often diving in unison.

Voice and Behavior

• Generally quiet; males produce odd popping, tapping, and belching sounds during an elaborate courtship display in which they slap their bill against an inflated neck to strike the water and create bubbles.
• Feeds mainly by diving, and rarely flies, preferring to escape danger by diving or swimming low with only the head above water.
• Takes off from water with a running start, showing whirring, fast wingbeats.