The Chiloé wigeon (''Mareca sibilatrix''), also known as the southern wigeon, is one of three

extant Extant is the opposite of the word extinct. It may refer to: * Extant hereditary titles * Extant literature, surviving literature, such as ''Beowulf'', the oldest extant manuscript written in English * Extant taxon, a taxon which is not extinct, ...

species of

wigeon The wigeons or widgeons are a group of birds, dabbling ducks currently classified in the genus ''Mareca'' along with two other species. There are three extant species of wigeon, in addition to one recently extinct species. Biology There are t ...

in the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

''Mareca'' of the

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 ...

subfamily. This bird is

indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

to the southern part of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

, including the

Chiloé Archipelago The Chiloé Archipelago ( es, Archipiélago de Chiloé, , ) is a group of islands lying off the coast of Chile, in the Los Lagos Region. It is separated from mainland Chile by the Chacao Channel in the north, the Sea of Chiloé in the east and t ...

. In its native range, it is called the ("

piebald A piebald or pied animal is one that has a pattern of unpigmented spots (white) on a pigmented background of hair, feathers or scales. Thus a piebald black and white dog is a black dog with white spots. The animal's skin under the white backgro ...

duck") or ("royal duck"), although the latter name also refers to the

Muscovy Muscovy is an alternative name for the Grand Duchy of Moscow (1263–1547) and the Tsardom of Russia (1547–1721). It may also refer to: *Muscovy Company, an English trading company chartered in 1555 * Muscovy duck (''Cairina moschata'') and Domes ...

in the wild. Its

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

, '' sibilatrix'', means 'whistler', referring to the bird's call.

Description

The Chiloé wigeon has a body length of and a

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan of ...

of . The wing length is about and the weight is approximately . This bird has an

iridescent Iridescence (also known as goniochromism) is the phenomenon of certain surfaces that appear to gradually change color as the angle of view or the angle of illumination changes. Examples of iridescence include soap bubbles, feathers, butterfl ...

green-blue cap on its head, and a bluish gray

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

with a black tip. The cheeks and forehead are white, the eyes are dark brown, and there is a white auricular patch. The neck and

occipital The occipital bone () is a cranial dermal bone and the main bone of the occiput (back and lower part of the skull). It is trapezoidal in shape and curved on itself like a shallow dish. The occipital bone overlies the occipital lobes of the cereb ...

part of the head are black. The breast is barred black and white and the

plumage Plumage ( "feather") is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, ...

of the wings is gray and white. The flanks of males are

rust Rust is an iron oxide, a usually reddish-brown oxide formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the catalytic presence of water or air moisture. Rust consists of hydrous iron(III) oxides (Fe2O3·nH2O) and iron(III) oxide-hydroxide (FeO(OH ...

colored, and light brown on females. The legs and feet are gray.

Sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...

is relatively subtle in this species of wigeon. Males are usually somewhat larger and heavier, and with somewhat brighter plumage and more strongly pronounced iridescence of the cap. Apart from these features, it can be difficult to distinguish the two sexes.Shirihai H: ''A Complete Guide to Antarctic Wildlife - The Birds and Marine Mammals of the Antarctic Continent and Southern Ocean'', Alula Press, Degerby 2002, p. 247. Juveniles resemble adult birds, but the rust coloring on the flanks is diminished or absent.

Distribution and habitat

This duck is indigenous to the southern part of South America, where it is found on freshwater lakes, marshes, shallow lagoons and slow flowing rivers.

Vagrants Vagrancy is the condition of homelessness without regular employment or income. Vagrants (also known as bums, vagabonds, rogues, tramps or drifters) usually live in poverty and support themselves by begging, scavenging, petty theft, temporar ...

have been observed in

South Georgia South Georgia ( es, Isla San Pedro) is an island in the South Atlantic Ocean that is part of the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. It lies around east of the Falkland Islands. Stretching in the east� ...

South Orkney The South Orkney Islands are a group of islands in the Southern Ocean, about north-east of the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula South Shetland Islands The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands with a total area of . They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between southwest of the nearest point of the South Orkney Islands. By the Antarctic Treaty of 195 ...

. It breeds primarily in Argentina, Uruguay, and Chile. The northern border of the breeding range is in Argentina at 36° S and Chile at 40° S. It also breeds sparingly in the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...

. It migrates to southeastern Brazil for the winter.Clements J (2007
''The Clements Checklist of the Birds of the World''
Cornell University Press, Ithaca It was first introduced to Europe in 1870; it soon bred in zoos. Because the Chiloé wigeon is widely distributed and has a large, stable wild population, it is categorized as

least concern A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...

by the IUCN.

Ecology and behavior

The Chiloé wigeon displays a variety of behaviors depending on habitat. It is an

omnivore An omnivore () is an animal that has the ability to eat and survive on both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize the nutr ...

, feeding predominantly on aquatic plants and grass, and occasionally coastal algae. This monogamous species breeds in the austral spring, between September and December. Pairs inhabit very small breeding territories, building their nests in grasses and under bushes. The female lays eight to ten white or cream-colored eggs. After a gestation period of approximately 24–25 days the ducklings are born. The father helps raise the ducklings; however, he leaves the family after the offspring

molt In biology, moulting (British English), or molting (American English), also known as sloughing, shedding, or in many invertebrates, ecdysis, is the manner in which an animal routinely casts off a part of its body (often, but not always, an outer ...

. Captive hybrids with the

Philippine Duck The Philippine duck (''Anas luzonica'') is a large dabbling duck 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. Tax ...

(''Anas luzonica'') have been described.

References

Works cited

* Kolbe, Hartmut; ''The Ducks of the World'', Ulmer Verlag 1999, * Woods, A, Woods, R: ''Atlas of Breeding Birds of the Falkland Islands'', Anthony Nelson, Shorpshire 1997,

External links

Anas sibilatrix videos, photos & sounds
on the Internet Bird Collection

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q537018, from2=Q28106921

Chiloé wigeon The Chiloé wigeon (''Mareca sibilatrix''), also known as the southern wigeon, is one of three extant species of wigeon in the genus ''Mareca'' of the dabbling duck subfamily. This bird is indigenous to the southern part of South America, inclu ...

Birds of Chile Chiloé Archipelago

Taxa named by Eduard Friedrich Poeppig Wigeons