The wigeons or widgeons are a group of birds,

dabbling ducks 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 youn ...

currently classified in the genus ''

Mareca ''Mareca'' is a genus or subgenus of ducks in the family Anatidae that includes the wigeons. The species now placed in this genus were formerly placed in the genus ''Anas''. A molecular phylogentic study comparing mitochondrial DNA sequences pub ...

'' along with two other species. There are three extant species of wigeon, in addition to one recently extinct species.

Biology

There are three extant species: the

Eurasian wigeon The Eurasian wigeon or European wigeon (''Mareca penelope''), also known as the widgeon or the wigeon, is one of three species of wigeon in the dabbling duck genus ''Mareca''. It is common and widespread within its Palearctic range. Taxonomy Th ...

(''Mareca penelope''), the

American wigeon The American wigeon (''Mareca americana''), also known as the baldpate, is a species of dabbling duck found in North America. Formerly assigned to ''Anas'', this species is classified with the other wigeons in the dabbling duck genus ''Mareca''. ...

(''M. americana'') and the

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, includi ...

(''M. sibilatrix''). A fourth species, the

Amsterdam wigeon The Amsterdam wigeon (''Mareca marecula'', formerly ''Anas marecula''), also known as the Amsterdam Island duck or Amsterdam duck, was a species of anatid waterfowl, endemic to Île Amsterdam (Amsterdam Island), the French Southern Territories. T ...

(''Mareca marecula''), became

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

in the 19th century. The wigeons' closest relatives, forming with them the genus ''Mareca'', are the

gadwall The gadwall (''Mareca strepera'') is a common and widespread dabbling duck in the family Anatidae. Taxonomy The gadwall was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. DNA studies have shown that ...

and the

falcated duck The falcated duck or falcated teal (''Mareca falcata'') is a gadwall-sized dabbling duck from the east Palearctic (East Siberia and Mongolia to North Japan; wintering to India). Taxonomy The closest relative of this species is the gadwall, follo ...

. All three wigeons are similarly shaped, with a steep forehead and bulbous rear to the head. Males have a distinctive breeding plumage, in their

eclipse 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, ...

they resemble females, which are similar in appearance year-round. All three wigeon species hybridise in captivity while American and Eurasian wigeons hybridise in the wild.Carey, Geoff J. (1993). Hybrid male wigeon in East Asia ''Hong Kong Bird Report 1992'' 160-6 An American wigeon × mallard hybrid has also been recorded. The American wigeon was formerly called the ''baldpate'' by ornithologists, and some people still use that name, especially hunters. The diet of the wigeon consists mainly of grass leaves (~80%), other food types eaten are seeds (~10%) and roots and stems (~5%).

References

External links

Photographs of hybrid wigeons can be see
here
an

Mareca Ducks Wigeons Bird common names {{duck-stub

Biology

References

Further reading

External links