Ringed Teal

About the ringed teal

The ringed teal is a small duck native to marshes, pools, and forest wetlands in south-central South America. It is the only species in the genus Callonetta and belongs to the subfamily Tadorninae, alongside the shelducks — it was once grouped with the perching ducks but is now known to be more closely related to shelducks.

Males and females look distinctly different, a pattern known as sexual dimorphism. The drake has a rich chestnut back, pale gray flanks, and a salmon-colored breast speckled in black, with a black band running from the crown of the head down to the nape. Females are more subdued, with an olive-brownish back, a head blotched and streaked in white, and fine barring across a pale chest and belly. Both sexes share a dark tail, a contrasting pale rump, a distinctive white patch on the wing, a gray bill, and pink legs and feet. Unlike many ducks, males and females keep the same plumage year-round rather than molting into a duller "eclipse" phase. The birds measure 14 to 15 inches long, with a 28-inch wingspan and a weight of 6.7 to 12.7 ounces.

Ringed teal also have webbed toes tipped with long, pointed claws, an adaptation that lets them perch comfortably on tree branches — something not all ducks can do. Their calls are distinctive too: a cat-like "mee-oowing" from females and a lingering "peewoo" from males.

Behavior and diet

Ringed teal pairs bond easily and, once mature, form strong pair bonds that typically last a single breeding season but can last a pair's lifetime. Courtship is an elaborate affair, with the male preening heavily, flashing his iridescent green speculum feathers, and swimming figure eights around a female of interest while calling. Once paired, mating takes place in the water.

As a predominantly aquatic species, the ringed teal is classified as a "dabbler" rather than a "diver." It feeds near the surface of the water on aquatic plants, invertebrates, and seeds, sometimes tipping forward with its tail in the air — a behavior called "up-ending" — but it rarely submerges completely the way diving ducks do.

Nests are usually built in tree cavities, though ringed teal will also use the large stick nests built by monk parakeets, lining them with down. Females lay 6 to 12 white eggs, incubated for an average of 26 to 28 days; both parents can incubate, though one captive study found females did all of the incubating. Chicks hatch precocial — covered in down and able to walk, feed, and function almost immediately — but their down is not yet waterproof, and until their own oil glands develop, they rely on contact with their parents' feathers for waterproofing. Both parents help raise and defend the chicks until fledging at 50 to 55 days old, with males often the more attentive parent, following behind slower or separated chicks. A bonded pair can produce two broods in a single season, with the male continuing to care for the first group of chicks while the female incubates a second clutch — a system efficient enough that a pair can raise as many as 24 offspring by the end of one breeding season.

Range and habitat

The ringed teal breeds across northern Argentina, southern and central Bolivia, southern Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. It is a resident species in much of this range, though it disperses short distances after breeding season ends. Its habitat centers on tropical, swampy forests and marshy clearings in well-wooded lowlands, along with secluded pools and small streams — the kind of still, vegetated water where a dabbling duck can feed easily near the surface.

Conservation status

The ringed teal is rated Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, in a 2016 assessment by BirdLife International. It is a resident species across a broad range of northern Argentina, Bolivia, southern Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay, and no specific threats or conservation programs are documented for it.