The Philippine duck (''Anas luzonica'') is a large

dabbling duck The Anatinae are a subfamily of the family Anatidae ( swans, geese and ducks). Its surviving members are the dabbling ducks, which feed mainly at the surface rather than by diving. The other members of the Anatinae are the extinct moa-nalo, a yo ...

of the genus ''Anas''. Its native name is ''papan''. It is endemic to the Philippines. It eats shrimp, fish, insects, and vegetation, and it frequents all types of wetlands.

Taxonomy

The Philippine duck is a

and a member of the genus '' Anas''. It has no subspecies and so it is monotypic. It belongs to the Pacific clade of ''Anas'' along with the koloa, the Laysan duck, the Pacific black duck, and the extinct

Mariana mallard The Mariana mallard or Oustalet's duck (''Anas oustaleti'') is an extinct species of duck of the genus ''Anas'' that was endemic to the Mariana Islands. Its taxonomic status is debated, and it has variously been treated as a full species, a subsp ...

. The scientific name comes from the Latin ''Anas,'' 'duck' and the Philippine island Luzon. It is known in the Philippines as ''papan''.

Description

The Philippine duck is a large conspicuous duck. It has a black crown, nape and eye stripe, with a cinnamon head and neck. The rest of its body is greyish brown with a bright green speculum. Its legs are greyish brown, and its bill is bluish-grey. The female is somewhat smaller than the male, but is otherwise the same.

Distribution and habitat

The Philippine duck is known to inhabit all of the major Philippine islands and 8 minor islands, but since the 1980s most sightings have been on Luzon and Mindanao. Long-distance vagrants have been sighted in Okinawa and Taiwan. It is found in all types of wetlands within its range, but its preferred habitat is shallow freshwater marshland.

Conservation status

The Philippine duck is rated

vulnerable Vulnerable may refer to: General * Vulnerability * Vulnerability (computing) * Vulnerable adult * Vulnerable species Music Albums * ''Vulnerable'' (Marvin Gaye album), 1997 * ''Vulnerable'' (Tricky album), 2003 * ''Vulnerable'' (The Used album) ...

on the IUCN Red List with the population estimated to be 3,300 - 6,700 mature individuals remaining. The species has experienced steep population decreases since the 1970s mainly due to hunting and habitat loss. The ducks have been heavily hunted since the 1960s with thousands being hunted a year through the late 1980s. Habitat loss is mainly due to wetland drainage,

aquaculture Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. lot ...

, mangrove destruction and fishpond creation. The species occurs in multiple protected areas including

Manleluag Spring Protected Landscape The Manleluag Spring Protected Landscape is a protected area containing natural hot springs in the Ilocos Region of the Philippines. It is one of 34 protected landscapes in the Philippines located in the municipality of Mangatarem, Pangasinan in th ...

, Mounts Iglit-Baco National Park,

Naujan Lake National Park Naujan Lake is a freshwater lake in the Philippines located in the northeastern corner of the province of Oriental Mindoro on Mindoro Island. The lake is the fifth largest in the country and the main geographical feature of the Naujan Lake Na ...

, Bataan National Park,

Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park The Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park is the largest protected area of the Philippines covering the northern range of the Sierra Madre mountains of eastern Luzon. The park is located in the eastern part of the province of Isabela in Cagayan Vall ...

and Olango Island, a Ramsar wetland. However, as is with most of the Philippines enforcement from hunting is lax.

Footnotes

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet
Philippine duck Philippine duck Birds of the Philippines Endemic birds of the Philippines Philippine duck Philippine duck {{duck-stub