Brazilian duck / Brazilian teal

Amazonetta brasiliensis

Braziliaanse taling / Amazonasente / Canard amazonette

The Brazilian teal or Brazilian duck is the only duck in the genus Amazonetta. It was formerly considered a "perching duck", but more recent analyses indicate that it belongs to a clade of South American dabbling ducks which also includes the crested duck, the bronze-winged duck, and possibly the steamer ducks.

The ducks are light brown in colour. Drakes distinguish themselves from females in having red beaks and legs, and in having a distinctive pale grey area on the side of its head and neck. The colour of these limbs is much duller in females.

Brazilian teal live in pairs or in small groups of up to twenty birds. Both parents look after their hatchlings. They eat seeds, fruits, roots and insect, while ducklings eat only insects.

Above: an adult pair, male left

They can be found throughout eastern South America, from Uruguay, to northern and eastern Argentina, Paraguay, central Venezuela, Brazil, northeastern Peru, Suriname, Guyana, French Guiana, eastern Bolivia, and eastern Colombia. Their preferred habitat is a body of freshwater away from the coast with dense vegetation nearby. There are two sub-species:

• A. brasiliensis brasiliensis (lesser Brazilian teal), the nominate race, found in Brazil, Suriname, Guyana, French Guiana, centralVenezuela, eastern Colombia, and northeastern Peru.
  
• A. brasiliensis ipecutiri (greater Brazilian teal), found in Brazil, Northern Argentina, eastern Bolivia, Uruguay, and Paraguay.
  

This species has an extremely large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence <20,000 km2 combined with a declining or fluctuating range size, habitat extent/quality, or population size and a small number of locations or severe fragmentation). The population trend appears to be stable, and hence the species does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion (>30% decline over ten years or three generations). The population size is very large and stable, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (<10,000 mature individuals with a continuing decline estimated to be >10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern (IUCN, 2012).

Above: adult male

Above: adult male

Above: adult female

Above: adult male