Chestnut teal

Anas castanea

The chestnut teal is a dabbling duck found in Australia. It is protected under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974.
Chestnut Teal female - Anas castanea The Chestnut Teal is a small dabbling duck with a high forehead and rounded head. Males are distinctive, having a glossy green head, chestnut brown neck, breast and flanks, dark brown upper body and wings, and a black undertail with contrasting white patch. Females are mottled dark brown and grey, with a pale throat streaked brown and a dark eye stripe. In both sexes the eye is a deep red, the bill is blue-grey and the legs and feet are green-grey. The wings have a dark glossy green to purple speculum (panel) edged white and the underwing is brown, with white wing pits.

https://australian.museum/learn/animals/birds/chestnut-teal/ Anas castanea,Australia,Chestnut teal,Fall,Geotagged

Appearance

The chestnut teal is darker and a slightly bigger bird than the grey teal.

The male has a distinctive green coloured head and mottled brown body. The female has a brown head and mottled brown body. The female is almost identical in appearance to the grey teal.

The female chestnut teal has a loud penetrating "laughing" quack repeated rapidly nine times or more.
Chestnut teal  Anas castanea,Australia,Chestnut teal,Geotagged,Winter

Distribution

The chestnut teal is commonly distributed in south-eastern and south-western Australia, while vagrants may occur elsewhere. Tasmania and southern Victoria are the species’ stronghold, while vagrants can be found as far north as New Guinea and Lord Howe Island.

The chestnut teal prefers coastal estuaries and wetlands, and is indifferent to salinity. This bird is an omnivore.
Chestnut Teal Male - Anas castanea  Anas castanea,Australia,Chestnut teal,Fall,Geotagged

Habitat

The chestnut teal is commonly distributed in south-eastern and south-western Australia, while vagrants may occur elsewhere. Tasmania and southern Victoria are the species’ stronghold, while vagrants can be found as far north as New Guinea and Lord Howe Island.

The chestnut teal prefers coastal estuaries and wetlands, and is indifferent to salinity. This bird is an omnivore.
Female chestnut teal - Anas castanea.  Anas castanea,Australia,Chestnut teal,Geotagged,Summer

Reproduction

Chestnut teals form monogamous pairs that stay together outside the breeding season, defend the nest site and look after the young when hatched. Nests are usually located over water, in a down-lined tree hollow about 6–10 m high. Sometimes nests are placed on the ground, among clumps of grass near water. The young hatch and are ready to swim and walk within a day.

References:

Some text fragments are auto parsed from Wikipedia.

Status: Least concern
EX EW CR EN VU NT LC
Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionChordata
ClassAves
OrderAnseriformes
FamilyAnatidae
GenusAnas
SpeciesA. castanea
Photographed in
Australia