Vertebrates, Aves, Anseriformes, Anatidae. It is included in the National List of Land Wildlife that is Beneficial or has Important Economic or Scientific Value and protected by Agreement between China and Japan on the Protection of Migratory Birds and their Habitats. Gadwall is widely distributed and has a population of nearly 5 million worldwide. In China, they breed mainly in northeast and northwest China and overwinter in most areas of south Yangtze River, rarely in coastal harbors, so they are not very common in some places, but they are the dominant species of winter residents in Qinghuahai, with a population of over 1,000. The photo is taken in The Qinghuahai National Wetland Park in Baoshan city, Yunnan proince.
Many people tend to hear " Gadwall (red wing duck in Chinese)" as "wing duck", that is because they don’t see the brown red feathers of Gadwall. Once you see, you will never forget. Male Gadwall have two reddish brown spots on their wings, which are particularly obvious when flapping or flying, occasionally be seen when swimming. The females do not have this reddish brown patch on their bodies, and they look brownish, which is similar to other female ducks, but they have obvious white speculum, and their bill are neatly black on the top and yellow on the bottom(there are dark spots on the sides), which can take other female ducks apart. Gadwall looks "ordinary" at first glance, but the more you see the more they look beautiful. The bill of male is black and head is light brown. Most of their body is silvery gray and covered with thin stripes, and the tail and undertail feathers are black, which looks very delicate.
Gadwall come from the north to spend winter in Qinghuahai every November. Now, thousands of Gadwall are "on vacation" in Qinghuahai, fatten up and have rest for breeding when they return north in spring, so they can often be seen either eating or sleeping motionless (taking a nap). Except occasionally eating small aquatic animals during the breeding season to lay eggs, Gadwall are almost vegan and prefer to eat aquatic plants. Unlike the Grebe or Pochard, they can't dive, so when they look for food, they dive their head, upper body into water and put the butt out of the water, or they filter plant debris and algae floating in the water through their mouth. The water level of East Lake is relatively shallow, and there are abundant aquatic plants, such as Vallisneria natans, Potamogeton crispus, Potamogeton pusillus, Myriophyllum spicatum and Nymphoides peltatum etc., which provide a good habitat for the overwintering migratory birds such as Gadwall. Although the food is plentiful, sometimes the Gadwall will be very aggressive and grab the water grass which was seek out by the Ferruginous Duck by dive into the water. Moreover, they even grab the food of Baer's Pochard, ignoring that they are the Critically endangered birds of the world.
Some friends may have noticed that it is winter now, but why are ducks already in pairs? Not yet the breeding season! In fact, many ducks mate in winter, so they can breed when they return to their breeding grounds in summer.