Birds
Wood duck
Aix sponsa
The wood duck is one of the most colourful ducks in the world: the male shows an iridescent green-and-purple head with white markings and a bright red eye. It is one of the few ducks that nests in tree cavities.
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In short
The wood duck (Aix sponsa) is a species with IUCN conservation status LC (Least concern). It lives in wooded wetlands, ponds, marshes and slow rivers fringed by trees, where it finds the cavities it nests in. Animals in Black offers a fine-art portrait of it on a black background, available as a print on Hahnemühle paper: view the print.
Habitat & conservation
Where does the wood duck live?
It lives in wooded wetlands, ponds, marshes and slow rivers fringed by trees, where it finds the cavities it nests in. A few hours after hatching, the ducklings leap from the high nest to reach the water.
Is the wood duck endangered?
Rated Least Concern (LC) with an increasing population. Once scarce due to hunting and habitat loss, it has recovered thanks to legal protection and widespread nest boxes across North America.
Facts about the wood duck
- It is among the very few ducks that nest in tree cavities.
- The ducklings jump from the nest even from over 10 metres up.
- Its recovery is a classic case of successful conservation.
Data source: IUCN Red List — Aix sponsa (Least Concern) · BirdLife International
RED List
Conservation status codes
- EX Extinct No individuals survive.
- EW Extinct in the wild Survives only in captivity.
- CR Critically endangered Extremely high risk of extinction.
- EN Endangered Very high risk of extinction.
- VU Vulnerable High risk of extinction.
- NT Near threatened Likely to become threatened soon.
- LC Least concern Low risk of extinction.
- DD Data deficient Not enough data to assess.
- NE Not evaluated Not yet assessed by the IUCN.