Mandarin Duck (redirected from mandarin ducks)

Mandarin Duck 

(Aix galericulata), a bird of the family Anatidae. The body length measures about 40 cm, and the weight about 500 g. The male in breeding plumage has a crest on his head that is purple-green on top and orange with white on the sides. The speculum on the wings is green. The inner secondary coverts are olive-green with orange and are raised like sails. In the summer and autumn the male is of brownish color, like the female.

The mandarin duck is distributed in Southeast Asia. In the USSR it is found in the Amur Region, in Primor’e, and in the southern part of the Kuril Islands. The mandarin duck migrates for the winter. It lives along forest streams and nests in tree hollows. The female lays nine to 12 eggs per clutch and incubates them approximately one month. The mandarin duck feeds on mollusks, worms, roe, and the seeds of aquatic plants. Of no commercial value, it is raised in parks as an ornamental bird.