White-headed Duck

The white-headed duck is a compact diving duck with a short neck and a long, stiff tail. A breeding male has a largely white head, black crown, vivid blue bill and reddish-grey body. Females are browner, with a dark bill, dark crown and a pale face crossed by a darker cheek stripe. The legs sit far back on the body, an arrangement useful for swimming and diving but awkward on land. Adults measure roughly forty-three to forty-eight centimetres and weigh 580–750 grams. (Wikipedia, general species account)

The species breeds on lakes and ponds that combine open water with dense aquatic vegetation for shelter and nesting. It normally feeds by diving, taking aquatic plants and seeds as well as benthic insect larvae and other invertebrates. Birds tend to swim or dive away from danger rather than immediately taking flight. Nests are concealed among reeds near the water; the female alone incubates four to nine eggs for about twenty-five days and then cares for the precocial young. (Wikipedia, general species account)