Northern Pintail

Anas acuta

Order ANSERIFORMES - Family ANATIDAE - Subfamily Anatinae

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1. Cool Facts
2. Description
3. Similar Species
4. Sound
5. Range
6. Habitat
7. Food
8. Behavior
9. Reproduction
10. Conservation Status
11. Other Names

Slim and long-necked, the Northern Pintail has a distinctive silhouette. The male is easy to identify by his striking markings and long tail, but even the female can be recognized by her graceful, long-necked shape.

Cool Facts

• Like the Mallard, the Northern Pintail breeds in a variety of habitats all across northern North America and Eurasia. Also like the Mallard, island populations have splintered off and evolved into separate species. Two closely related forms can be found on Crozet and Kerguelen islands in the very southern Indian Ocean, known as Eaton's Pintail (Anas eatoni).
• The Northern Pintail is among the earliest nesting ducks in North America, beginning shortly after ice-out in many northern areas.

Description

• Size: 51-76 cm (20-30 in)
• Weight: 500-1450 g (17.65-51.19 ounces)

• Medium-sized duck.
• Long, thin neck.
• Pointed tail, extremely long in males.
• Male with white chest, white stripe up neck, and dark reddish brown head.

• Long, narrow wings.

Sex Differences

Male boldly patterned with white chest and long tail; female dull brown.

Male

Breeding (Alternate) Plumage: Chocolate-brown head. White neck and underparts, white extending up back of neck in thin line. Very long black central tail feathers. Black rear end bordered by yellowish tan patch. Sides and upper back gray. Lower back feathers long and black with pale edges. Rear of wing (speculum) bronzy greenish with black band and white rear edge. Bill black with bluish gray stripes. Eyes dark brown. Legs gray.
Eclipse (Basic) Plumage: Duller. Overall brownish. Head, throat, and neck medium brownish with fine dark streaks. Upperparts brownish to grayish with broad dark barring. Central tail feathers brown and long, but much shorter and wider than in breeding plumage. Bill black with bluish gray stripes. Eyes dark brown. Legs gray.

Female

Crown and face tan. Chin whitish. Back and rump brown with lighter edges to feathers. Upper breast buff or tan. Lower breast and belly white. Tail pointed, with central tail feathers longest. Rear of wing (speculum) bronzy greenish with black band and white rear edge. Bill dull black, occasionally with bluish stripes. Eyes dark brown. Legs bluish gray.

Immature

Similar to adult female.

Similar Species

No other female dabbling duck has such a long thin neck and a plain tan face.

Sound

Male makes wheezy mewing notes and a whistle. Female quacks.

»listen to songs of this species

Range

Summer Range

Breeds throughout Alaska and Canada, southward to central Great Plains and Great Lakes. Also in northern Eurasia.

Winter Range

Winters from central United States southward to northern South America. Also in southern Europe, northern Africa, and southern Asia.

Habitat

Nests in open country with shallow, seasonal wetlands and low vegetation. Winters in wide variety of shallow inland freshwater and intertidal habitats.

Food

Grain, seeds, weeds, aquatic insects, crustaceans, and snails.

Behavior

Foraging

Picks food from surface of ground. Dabbles, filter-feeds at surface of water, tips-up in shallow water.

Reproduction

Nest Type

Scrape in ground in brush or grass, lined with grass and down; usually not near water.

Egg Description

Greenish buff.

Clutch Size

3-12 eggs.

Condition at Hatching

Covered in down and able to leave the nest soon after hatching.

Conservation Status

Not endangered, but populations are lower than desired.

Other Names

Canard pilet (French)
Pato golondrino (Spanish)

Sources used to construct this page:

Austin, J. E., and M. R. Miller. 1995. Northern Pintail (Anas acuta). In The Birds of North America, No. 163 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, and The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C.