Wood Duck

One of the most beautiful aquatic birds in the entire world is the wood duck. Throughout the United States and Canada, they are primarily found along streams and marshy swamps. The wood duck males are more beautiful than the females. Males have nicely dispersed purple tones on their metallic green heads and crests. Beautiful, tapering white stripes adorn their necks.

The interesting combination of black and blue patterns in wood duck plumage serves the dual purpose of luring females during the breeding season. A male wood duck's attractiveness is completed by his white underside and his scarlet chest region. The female wood duck is less attractive and has a brownish head with a pale belly. The chest area is splattered with white coloration. These unusual birds frequently choose to live within man-made structures since they are woefully ill-equipped to dig their own burrows for breeding.