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A sneak is a type of well-floating duck. These are wild birds, in households they are not bred and do not contain. Slit ducks are very popular due to their beautiful and interesting appearance. In addition, these individuals have one feature - they are an intermediate link between two different types of ducks: goggles and merchants. That is why the little leaf has in its appearance the features of that and the other breed.
Breed characteristics
The second name of a duck is a white Gogol. You can meet these beautiful birds in the Far East, in the northern part of Europe, as well as in Siberia. They live mainly in reservoirs with fresh water. In our country, these ducks occupy the taiga zones, and in the cold season they fly to the Sea of Okhotsk, Japan and the Caspian Sea for wintering, which do not freeze all year round.Distinctive features of these birds are medium body size, light and rather motley feather color, as well as a beautiful profile of the head. The little ducks dive well, and you can also note their excellent swimming skills with a low tail.
Appearance
While the birds of this species are in the mating season, the representatives of the male half have a bright and variegated color. The main part of the plumage is white, which is complemented by black patterns. Females have a more simple and calm color. The back of the females is completely gray, and the head is covered with completely red feathers, the rest of the body also has a white plumage. The paws of these ducks are mostly gray. Males can be distinguished from females by a pronounced tuft on the head.
Birds at a very young age, even before the first plumage changes,have the same color, about the same as in adult females. The only difference in young individuals is gray sides and goiter. It should be noted that the males are more rapid growth and development than the female half, therefore, in size much more.
How to multiply?
After a period of hibernation, the patches return to the same place where they lived before, but in pairs. Nests are constructed mainly in hollows of trees located near freshwater bodies of water. Only feathers are used as litter, in contrast to the nests of many other birds. The eggs of the female are laid mainly at the beginning of the first summer month. The average clutch is 8-9 eggs. However, quite often, the gogoli place their eggs in the nests of the flocks, therefore, the females sometimes have to hatch more eggs.
From the moment of laying eggs until the appearance of chicks, exactly one month passes. Males spend the first half of the term together with the female, and then leave it. For the last two weeks, the female has to cuddle very tightly against the eggs to keep the heat as high as possible. Chicks that appeared at the expense of only the first few hours arrive in the nest.Then they follow to the nearest reservoir right behind their mother. The development and growth of chicks of chunks occurs fairly quickly, 10 days after hatching, they can fly on their own.
Where do they live and how do they live?
In comparison with other species of waterfowl, the ditches are distinguished by the fact that they feed not on fish, but on various insects that live in water. Most often, it is a variety of bugs, dragonflies, mosquito larvae and caddisflies. In addition, sometimes duck dabs eat a variety of plants and amphibians. These birds eat fish extremely rarely, mostly it happens in early spring or in winter, when there is no other food. For the accommodation, the most often chooses lakes or ponds with fresh water in the forest. Also, sometimes they can be found in the floodplains of shallow rivers or in the area of sphagnum bogs. Winter birds go to areas of warm seas or large non-freezing rivers and lakes.
In Russia, wintering patches can be found on the shores of the Sea of Okhotsk, in the valleys of the Yenisei, in the basin of the Anadyr River, on the Rybinsk Reservoir, in the valley of the Indigirka River, as well as in Transbaikalia and Amur Region.Outside our country, birds of this breed can be found in Sweden and Finland. Squabs overwinter, as a rule, in southeastern Asia, on the Japanese islands, in the north of Hindustan and in the Mediterranean.
Moult
Like most birds, twice a year, the patches shed steadily. As a rule, it happens in the fall and summer. In the summer, the feathers are replaced almost completely, but in the fall the molt is rather partial, the feathers are replaced in the area of the tail and wings. Juveniles begin shedding for the first time in autumn, in September. More adults usually molt in October.
Duck behavior
Slot Hunting
Slippers are very fond of hunters.Officially, hunting for this species of birds is allowed, so it is quite popular among hunters. As a rule, the season begins at a time when the birds fly to winter areas to warmer areas. In order to lure shoots, hunters traditionally use stuffed birds. Watching the behavior of these birds in vivo is quite interesting, so if you have such an opportunity, do not miss it.
Video: Smews (Mergellus albellus)
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