Blue-winged Teal
Spatula discors
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderAnseriformes (Waterfowl)
- FamilyAnatidae (Ducks, Geese, and Swans)
- GenusSpatula (Shovelers and Allies)
- SpeciesSpatula discors (Blue-winged Teal)
About the Blue-winged Teal
The blue-winged teal (Spatula discors) is a species of bird in the duck, goose, and swan family Anatidae. One of the smaller members of the dabbling duck group, it occurs in North America, where it breeds from southern Alaska to Nova Scotia, and south to northern Texas. It winters along the Pacific and Atlantic coasts and south into the Caribbean islands and Central America.
The first formal description of the blue-winged teal was by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1766 in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae. He coined the binomial name Anas discors. A molecular phylogentic study comparing mitochondrial DNA sequences published in 2009 found that the genus Anas, as then defined, was non-monophyletic. The genus was subsequently split into four monophyletic genera with ten species including the blue-winged teal moved into the resurrected genus Spatula. This genus had been originally proposed by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie in 1822. The name Spatula is the Latin for a "spoon" or "spatula". The specific epithet discors is the Latin for "different" or "at variance".
The blue-winged teal is 40 cm (16 in) long, with a wingspan of 58 cm... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Blue-winged Teal in Wadden Sea National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Wadden Sea National Park
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Common Shelduck
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Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.