Fun Ferruginous Duck Facts For Kids

The ferruginous duck (Aythya nyroca) is a medium-sized migratory duck species that is also known by the name common white-eye, ferruginous pochard, and white-eyed pochard. They are also called diving ducks of the Palearctic realm because these ducks feed while diving into the water. The Palearctic realm is the biogeographic division that stretches from Europe and Asia to North Africa.

The binomial name of ferruginous duck (Aythya nyroca fuligule) is derived from the Greek and Russian name Aithuia and Nyrok, respectively, which means unknown, not identified seabird or duck.

For more relatable content, check out these common swift facts and canyon wren facts for kids.

What type of animal is a ferruginous duck?

The ferruginous duck (Aythya nyroca) is a duck species that are found in Asia and Europe. Some other types of ducks are the Muscovy duck, crested duck, and ring-necked duck.

What class of animal does a ferruginous duck belong to?

The ferruginous duck (Aythya nyroca) belongs to the class of Aves, the genus of Aythya, order Anseriformes, and the family Anatidae, which consists of ducks, swans, geese.

How many ferruginous ducks are there in the world?

The exact population of the ferruginous duck family is not exactly known yet, but their population is very less as their conservation status is declining as the day passes. If this continues, in no time, they will get extinct.

Where does a ferruginous duck live?

The ferruginous duck range extends from southeastern Europe to South Asia. They are also known to be migratory birds who migrate to parts of North Africa during the winter season.

What is a ferruginous duck's habitat?

The ferruginous duck's habitat consists of places with freshwater bodies. They are found in marshes, lakes, brackish waters, lagoons, wetlands, and different seas like the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea.

Who do ferruginous ducks live with?

Like every other duck species, the ferruginous duck (Aythya nyroca) is found living with different ducks, swans, and geese in the breeding habitat places like marshes and lakes. Although they prefer living with their own species, they can also be found with other groups of species.

How long does a ferruginous duck live?

The ferruginous duck's lifespan is not known yet. It is estimated that their lifespan is the same as the other species of duck, which can be around 10-12 years.

How do they reproduce?

During the breeding season, the male and female ferruginous ducks come together for the breeding process. For building the nest, the pair find the perfect breeding habitat as the main cause of breeding failure is because the breeding nest is not in the perfect place. After building the nest, the female bird lays eggs while the male took care of the nest. It is the duty of the male duck bird to guard the nest while the female looks after the eggs.

What is their conservation status?

The conservation status of the ferruginous duck is Near Threatened, and if this continues they could become an Endangered species. They are declining in population because of habitat destruction.

What do ferruginous ducks look like?

The description of male and female duck ferruginous is a little bit different as the females are duller in color than males. The description of the male is simple as they have a dark and chestnut-colored body with white patch underparts. In addition, they have a white-colored belly with yellow eye color.

While the female is duller brown with dark eyes, both the male and female have dark gray bills and white wings.

How cute are they?

All ducks are cute, whether they are ferruginous duck or other species of duck.

How do they communicate?

Ferruginous ducks communicate with each other through various use of vocalizations. Some of the vocals that they produce are quacks, coos, whistles, and grunts. Apart from these, they also produce various calls like hail calls and decrescendo calls.

How big is a ferruginous duck?

The size of the ferruginous ducks is around 14.9-16.5 in (38-42 cm) in length. These birds are larger than the little seagull which is around 9.8 in (25 cm) in length.

How fast can a ferruginous duck fly?

The average speed that the ferruginous bird can fly is not estimated yet. But we assumed that they could take long flights because they are migratory bird species.

How much does a ferruginous duck weigh?

The weight of the ferruginous bird is up to 1.2 lb (570 g).

What are the male and female names of the species?

There are no specific names for the males and females species of these birds.

What would you call a baby ferruginous duck?

The baby ferruginous birds are known as ducklings. When the ducklings are one day old, they can swim and run. These baby birds also start to catch their own food in two to three days.

What do they eat?

The diet of ferruginous duck consists of both aquatic plants as well as fish. In addition, they can feed on crustaceans, invertebrates, and small insects. The habit of these birds is to take dive inside the water and then feed on the insects. These birds also feed at night when most of the fishes are not active.

Are they dangerous?

The ferruginous duck is not known to be a dangerous animal to humans. On the contrary, ducks are actually quite friendly with humans.

Would they make a good pet?

The ferruginous duck cannot be a satisfactory pet to a human. The main reason behind this is that they cannot live without water and prefer to feed on live fish.

Did you know...

The feet of the ferruginous duck are designed in such a way for swimming that they lack blood vessels and nerves on their feet so they can easily swim above the freezing and cold waters.

Why is it called ferruginous?

These ducks are given the name ferruginous because it resembles the iron rust by its color, and these bird species fit into this category.

How to identify hybrid ferruginous tufted duck?

To differentiate between the ferruginous duck and tufted duck hybrid is quite easy. The head shape is not exactly perfect for the ferruginous duck. Tufted duck hybrids have slightly different flanks and breasts to the ferruginous ducks.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other birds from our black cuckoo facts and Anna's hummingbird facts pages.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable Ferruginous duck coloring pages.