The Northern Shoveler

The Northern Shoveler is best known for its distinctive shovel-shaped bill. It is a medium size duck measuring 17 to 20 inches in length. The male has a green head, white body, and chestnut belly. The wings have a bleu-gray shoulder patch and there is white stripe extending from the beast along the margins of its back. During breeding season the bill is black and its legs and feet orange.

The female Northern Shoveler is slightly smaller than the male. Its streaked brown plumage is similar to that of the female Blue-winged Teal. Both had the blue shoulder patches, but the female Northern Shoveler is larger. She also has the spoon shaped bill similar to that of the male making her easy to identify.

During breeding season the Northern Shoveler is common in the northern areas of Europe and Asia as well as across North America. During the winter it can be spotted in the southern states of North America as well as Central America and the Caribbean.

During the summer months the Northern Shoveler prefers the open, shallow wetlands in prairies covered with either short-grass or long-grass. The key feature being that there is grassland nearby for nesting.

During the winter the Northern Shoveler resides in a wider range of habitats. This includes fresh and saltwater marshes, shallow open lakes, even agriculture wastewater ponds. There must be water for it to feed.

Pair bonds are formed toward the end of the wintering season and the pair returns to the breeding grounds together. It is the hen that determines where the nest will be located and sees to its construction. The nest is built on the ground under a bush or in tall vegetation. It starts out as a scraped out depression in the ground. Leaves, grass, down and feathers are then added.

A clutch consists of eight to ten eggs and is incubated solely by the hen. Except for short breaks to feed, she will remain on the nest for the three weeks it takes for the eggs to hatch. Once all the eggs have hatched, the ducklings are lead to the water. They can walk and feed themselves right from the beginning. It will be another month and a half to two months before they fledge.

The Northern Shoveler is a filter feeder. It skims its bill through the water close to the bottom of a pond or lake, drawing the water in through the front of its bill. The water is then forced back out through the comb-like lamellae along the sides of its bill. The lamellae act as a filter capturing plankton, snails and insects.

The Northern Shoveler's population status is stable, but deforestation and agricultural development has been an issue. Their migratory routes are shifting eastward as they search for new breeding grounds. Similar in appearance to the Mallard, it is often in the hunter's sights as well.