African black Duck

Anas sparsa

Common name

African black Duck

Habitat

It prefers rivers with shallow, fluid waters as well as water currents with rocky substrate. It is also found in open and arid areas, reservoirs, lagoons or estuaries, and even in stagnant waters or sewage ponds.
Features

Family

Anatidae

Order

anseriformes

Class

Birds

Gestation

No information available.

Number of offspring

No information available.

Breeding programs

Diet

Omnivorous based on algae and other aquatic plants, agricultural vegetation, fruits of terrestrial plants that hang over the water, blackberries and other berries, fallen fruits, aquatic insects and their larvae, crustaceans, amphibian larvae and fish eggs.

Lifespan

No information available.

Biology and Behavior

The black duck is characterized by having completely black plumage with white markings on its wings, tail and back. They also have characteristic metallic blue glasses on their wings.

It is a territorial and sedentary bird, it does not migrate. However, in South Africa some of them move from rivers to open water areas where they roost. It is a species of diurnal habits that generally rests at night. During the day it spends its time feeding and grooming its feathers.

The breeding season is not regular, it varies depending on the area in which they live. During the periods between the breeding season and the non-breeding season they remain dispersed individually or in pairs.

Although they do not form large aggregations, when they land in the wetlands they inhabit they can form important groups.

They make their nests both in cavities in the ground and in the branches of trees. They are generally found near water, among riverside plants or among floating remains of vegetation.

Although its conservation status is of Least Concern, this species is threatened by deforestation in Kenya, it is also suffering from habitat loss due to the degradation of rivers, either due to the construction of dams, water extraction, water pollution or the introduction of invasive plant species.

Some
Interesting Facts

Hybridization with the mallard or collverd (anas platyrhynchos), so present in our wetlands but an invasive species in Africa, constitutes another threat to the survival of this species.