One of the most widely
distributed waterfowl in North America, the northern pintail is a
medium-sized bird belonging to a group called «dabbling ducks».
This species tips up and immerses its head, neck and front body parts to
feed on plants and small invertebrates in shallow water. Pintails dive
more often than other dabbling ducks, and often feed in cereal fields
during migration.
The two sexes are very different in appareance. Both are slender and
graceful, but the female is less conspicuous, with duller plumage. Males
undergo a complete molt in summer, and lacking wing feathers during this
four-week period, cannot fly. The full breeding plumage is replenished by
mid-to late-fall, and lasts until the next breeding season is over the
following summer.
After the male's wing feathers have grown back, migration begins- males
in early August, and females after their later molting period. In the
November-to-January period, northern pintails are the most abundant ducks
in Mexico. The return flights begin in February with the birds arriving
in nesting areas as early as April.
Northern Pintail stamps
Canadian Wildlife Service - Quebec's Regional Office
Illinois Natural Resources Information Network
Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History
Oakland Zoo
Familiar Birds
Duck-like Birds
Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
Natural History of Higashi Hiroshima City (photo)
Ducks Unlimited Canada
Birds of British Columbia
eNature.com
Song of the Northern Pintail
Réseau écologique européen Natura 2000
Le Couche-Tard
LPO en Finistère
Oiseaux de la Baie de Saint-Brieuc
