{{Short description|Species of bird}} {{speciesbox | image = American Wigeon Male.jpg | image_caption = Male | image2 = American Wigeon Female.jpg | image2_caption = Female | status = LC | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name="iucn status">{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2021 |title=''Mareca americana'' |article-number=e.T22680163A137010293 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22680163A137010293.en}}</ref> | genus = Mareca | species = americana | authority = (Gmelin, JF, 1789) | synonyms = ''Anas americana'' <small>Gmelin, 1789</small> | range_map = Mareca americana map.svg | range_map_caption = {{leftlegend|FF7F2A|Breeding summer visitor}}{{leftlegend|7137C8|Breeding resident}}{{leftlegend|5F8DD3|Nonbreeding winter visitor}} }} {{birdsong|url=https://xeno-canto.org/species/Mareca-americana|species=American Wigeon}}
The '''American wigeon''' ('''''Mareca americana'''''), also known as the '''baldpate''', is a species of dabbling duck found in North America. Formerly assigned to ''Anas'', this species is classified with the other wigeons in the dabbling duck genus ''Mareca''. It is the New World counterpart of the Eurasian wigeon.
==Taxonomy== The American wigeon was formally described in 1789 by German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with all the other ducks, geese, and swans in the genus ''Anas'' and coined the binomial name ''Anas americana''.<ref>{{ cite book | last=Gmelin | first=Johann Friedrich | author-link=Johann Friedrich Gmelin| year=1789 | title=Systema naturae per regna tria naturae: secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis | edition=13th | volume=1, Part 2 | language=Latin | location=Lipsiae [Leipzig] | publisher=Georg. Emanuel. Beer | page=526 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/2656019 }}</ref> Gmelin based his description on Edme-Louis Daubenton's hand-colour plate of "Le Canard Jensen, de la Louisiane" and Thomas Pennant's description of the "American wigeon" in his ''Arctic Zoology''. Pennant had been sent a specimen from New York.<ref>{{ cite book | last1=Buffon | first1=Georges-Louis Leclerc de | author1-link=Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon | last2=Martinet | first2=François-Nicolas | author2-link=François-Nicolas Martinet | last3=Daubenton | first3=Edme-Louis | author3-link=Edme-Louis Daubenton | last4=Daubenton | first4=Louis-Jean-Marie | author4-link=Louis-Jean-Marie Daubenton | year=1765–1783 | chapter=Le canard jensen de Louisiane | title=Planches Enluminées D'Histoire Naturelle | volume=10 | location=Paris | publisher=De L'Imprimerie Royale | at=Plate 955 | chapter-url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/35223655 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last=Pennant | first=Thomas | author-link=Thomas Pennant | year=1785 | title=Arctic Zoology | volume=2 | publisher=Printed by Henry Hughs | location=London, United Kingdom | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/32122353 | pages=567-568, No. 502 }}</ref><ref>{{ cite book | editor1-last=Mayr | editor1-first=Ernst | editor1-link=Ernst Mayr | editor2-last=Cottrell | editor2-first=G. William | year=1979 | title=Check-List of Birds of the World | volume=1 | edition=2nd | publisher=Museum of Comparative Zoology | place=Cambridge, Massachusetts | page=463 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/16109103 }}</ref> The American wigeon is now placed with the Eurasian wigeon and three other dabbling ducks in the genus ''Mareca'' that was introduced in 1824 by the English naturalist James Francis Stephens.<ref>{{ cite book | last=Stephens | first=James Francis | author-link=James Francis Stephens | year=1824 | title=General Zoology, or Systematic Natural History, by the Late George Shaw | volume=12 Part 2 | place=London | publisher=Printed for G. Kearsley | page=130 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/19631616 }}</ref><ref name=ioc>{{cite web| editor1-last=Gill | editor1-first=Frank | editor1-link=Frank Gill (ornithologist) | editor2-last=Donsker | editor2-first=David | editor3-last=Rasmussen | editor3-first=Pamela | editor3-link=Pamela Rasmussen | date=January 2022 | title=Screamers, ducks, geese & swans | work=IOC World Bird List Version 12.1 | url=http://www.worldbirdnames.org/bow/waterfowl/ | publisher=International Ornithologists' Union | access-date=4 July 2022 }}</ref> The name of the genus comes from the Portuguese word ''Marréco'' for a small duck.<ref>{{cite book | last=Jobling | first=James A. | year=2010| title= The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names | publisher=Christopher Helm | location=London | isbn= 978-1-4081-2501-4 | page=241 | url=https://archive.org/stream/Helm_Dictionary_of_Scientific_Bird_Names_by_James_A._Jobling#page/n241/mode/1up}}</ref> The species is considered to be monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.<ref name=ioc/>
An alternative common name is the "baldpate" due to the whitish crown and forehead of the male bird.<ref name=bow>{{Cite journal | last1=Mini | first1=A.E. | last2=Harrington | first2=E.R. | last3=Rucker | first3=E. | last4=Dugger | first4=B.D. | last5=Mowbray | first5=T.B. | date=2020 | title=American Wigeon (''Mareca americana''), version 1.0 | editor-last=Poole | editor-first=A.F. | journal=Birds of the World | location=Ithaca, NY, USA | publisher=Cornell Lab of Ornithology | doi=10.2173/bow.amewig.01 }}</ref>
== Description == thumb|A male on land showing his legs and feet. The American wigeon is a medium-sized bird; it is larger than a teal but smaller than a pintail. In silhouette, the wigeon can be distinguished from other dabblers by its round head, short neck, and small bill.<ref name=du>{{cite web|publisher=Ducks Unlimited|date=May–June 2010|url=http://www.ducks.org/TheAmericanWigeon|title=The American Wigeon|access-date=2010-08-08|archive-date=2011-12-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111215142945/http://www.ducks.org/TheAmericanWigeon}}</ref> It is {{convert|42|–|59|cm|in|abbr=on}} long, with a {{convert|76|-|91|cm|in|abbr=on}} wingspan and a weight of {{convert|512|-|1330|g|lb|abbr=on}}.<ref name="Floyd" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Wigeon/lifehistory|title=American Wigeon|work=All About Birds}}</ref><ref name = "CRC">{{cite book|title=CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses|editor-first= John B. Jr.|editor-last= Dunning |publisher= CRC Press |year=1992|isbn=978-0-8493-4258-5}}</ref> This wigeon has two adult molts per year and a juvenile molt in the first year, as well.<ref name="Floyd" />
The breeding male (drake) is a striking bird with a mask of green feathers around its eyes and a cream-colored cap running from the crown of his head to his bill. This white patch gives the wigeon its other common name, baldpate (pate is another word for head).<ref>{{Cite web|title=Baldpate {{!}} bird|url=https://www.britannica.com/animal/baldpate|access-date=2021-06-17|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref> His belly is also white.<ref name="Dunn" /> In flight, drakes can be identified by the large white shoulder patch on each wing. These white patches flash as the birds bank and turn. In nonbreeding (eclipse) plumage, the drake looks more like the female.<ref name="du"/>
The hens are much less conspicuous, having primarily gray and brown plumage. Both sexes have a pale blue bill with a black tip, a white belly, and gray legs and feet.<ref name="du"/> The wing patch behind the speculum is gray. They can be distinguished from most ducks, apart from Eurasian wigeon, by shape. However, that species has a darker head and all-grey underwing. The head and neck coloring of the female is different from the Eurasian wigeon.<ref name="Dunn" /> She nests on the ground, near water and under cover, and lays 6–12 creamy white eggs. Flocks often contain American coots.<ref name="Floyd" />
The American wigeon is a noisy species, and in the field can often be identified by its distinctive calls. Drakes produce a three-note whistle, while hens emit hoarse grunts and quacks.<ref name="du"/> The male whistle makes a wheezy ''{{not a typo|whoee-whoe-whoe}}'', whereas the female has a low growl ''{{not a typo|qua-ack}}''.
== Distribution and habitat == left|thumb|Female and ducklings It is common and widespread, breeding in all but the extreme north of Canada and Alaska and also in the Interior West through Idaho, Colorado, the Dakotas, and Minnesota, as well as eastern Washington and Oregon.<ref name="Floyd">{{cite book|last=Floyd|first= T.|year=2008|title=Smithsonian Field Guide to the Birds of North America|publisher= Harper Collins|location=New York}}</ref><ref name="Dunn">{{cite book|last1=Dunn|first1= J. |last2=Alderfer|first2= J. |year=2006|title=National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America|edition=5th}}</ref> The conservation status of this bird is least concern.<ref name="iucn status" /> The majority of the population breeds on wetlands in the Boreal Forest and subarctic river deltas of Canada and Alaska. Although wigeons are found in each flyway, they are most numerous in the Pacific Flyway. Key wintering areas here include the Central Valley of California and Washington's Puget Sound. Farther east, the Texas Panhandle, the Gulf Coast of Louisiana and Texas, and the Caribbean also support large numbers of wintering wigeons.<ref name="du"/>
This dabbling duck is migratory and winters farther south than its breeding range, in the southern half of the United States, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and the Mid-Atlantic coastal region,<ref name="Floyd" /><ref name="Dunn" /> and further south into Central America, the Caribbean, and northwestern South America.<ref name="Clements">{{cite book|last=Clements|first= James|year=2007|url=https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/cup_detail.taf?ti_id=4566|title=The Clements Checklist of the Birds of the World|publisher= Cornell University Press, Ithaca}}</ref> It is a rare but regular vagrant to western Europe,<ref name="Floyd" /> and has been observed in significant numbers in Great Britain and Ireland since at least 1958.<ref name="Votier">{{cite journal |last1=Votier|first1=Stephen C.|last2=Harrop|first2=Andrew H.J.|last3=Denny|first3=Matthew|date=January 2003|title=A review of the status and identification of American Wigeon in Britain & Ireland|journal=British Birds |volume=96 |issue=1 |pages=2–22 |issn=0007-0335 }}</ref> In the United Kingdom, American wigeons are most commonly observed in autumn and winter.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ornithology |first=British Trust for |date=2015-04-07 |title=American Wigeon |url=https://www.bto.org/understanding-birds/birdfacts/american-wigeon |access-date=2024-05-25 |website=BTO - British Trust for Ornithology |language=en}}</ref>
In 2009, an estimated 2.5 million breeding wigeons were tallied in the traditional survey area—a level just below the 1955–2009 average. In recent decades, wigeon numbers have declined in the Prairie Pothole Region of Canada and increased in the interior and west coast of Alaska. The American wigeon is often the fifth-most commonly harvested duck in the United States, behind the mallard, green-winged teal, gadwall, and wood duck.<ref name="du"/>
== Behavior == [[File:Male american wigeon in flight-1274.jpg|thumb|Male in flight at the Llano Seco Unit of the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex, California]] thumb| Flock in flight at Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex The American wigeon is a bird of open wetlands, such as wet grassland or marshes with some taller vegetation, and usually feeds by dabbling for plant food or grazing, which it does very readily. While on the water, wigeons often gather with feeding coots and divers and are known to grab pieces of vegetation brought to the surface by diving water birds—so are sometimes called "poacher" or "robber" ducks. Wigeons also commonly feed on dry land, eating waste grain in harvested fields and grazing on pasture grasses, winter wheat, clover, and lettuce. Having a largely vegetarian diet, most wigeons migrate in the fall well before northern marshes begin to freeze.<ref name="du"/> The American wigeon is highly gregarious outside of the breeding season and forms large flocks.<ref name="Floyd" />
===Breeding=== Breeding begins in April-May. The nest is a depression on dry ground, often some distance from water. It is lined with grass and down and is hidden in vegetation. The clutch is 7–9, cream-colored eggs, which measure on average {{cvt|52.9|x|37.5|mm}} and weigh {{cvt|43|g}}. They are incubated for 23–25 days by the female only. The male usually deserts the female before the end of the incubation period. The young are precocial and leave the nest within 24 hours of hatching. They can feed themselves. The young can fly when around 47 days of age.<ref name=bow/>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Sources== *{{cite journal|last=Harrop|first=A. |year=1994|title= Field identification of American Wigeon|journal= Birding World |volume=7|pages=50–56}} *{{cite journal|last=Jiquet|first=F.|year= 1999|title=Photo forum: Hybrid American Wigeons|journal= Birding World |volume=12|pages=247–252}} *{{cite journal|last=Larkin|first= P. |year=2000|title= Eyelid colour of American Wigeon|journal= British Birds|volume= 93|pages=39–40}} *{{Cite book|last1=Madge|first1=Steve|last2=Burn|first2=Hilary|title=Waterfowl: an Identification Guide to the Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World|publisher=Houghton Mifflin|year=1988|location=Boston|isbn=0-395-46727-6|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/waterfowl00stev}} *{{cite journal|last1=Olson|first1= Storrs L.|last2= James|first2=Helen F. |last3= Meister|first3= C. A. |year=1981|title=Winter field notes and specimen weights of Cayman Island birds|journal= Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club|volume=101|issue=3|pages= 339–346|hdl=10088/6535}} *{{cite journal|last1=Votier|first1= S. C.|first2=A. H. J.|last2= Harrop|first3= M.|last3=Denny|year= 2003|url=http://www.britishbirds.co.uk/search?id=8882 |title=A review of status and identification of American Wigeon in Britain and Ireland|journal=British Birds|volume= 96|pages=2–22}} *{{cite journal|last1=Cox|first1=Cameron|first2=Jessie|last2=Barry|url=http://www.aba.org/birding/v37n2p156.pdf|title=Aging of American and Eurasian Wigeons in female-type plumages|journal=Birding|volume=37|issue=2|pages=156–164|access-date=2011-10-09|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019060610/http://aba.org/birding/v37n2p156.pdf|archive-date=2012-10-19}}
==External links== {{Commons category|Mareca americana}} {{Wikispecies|Anas americana}} *[https://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/American_Wigeon.html American Wigeon Species Account] – Cornell Lab of Ornithology *[https://web.archive.org/web/20071217032348/http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i1370id.html American Wigeon - ''Anas americana''] - USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter * {{InternetBirdCollection|american-wigeon-anas-americana|American Wigeon}} * {{VIREO|American+Wigeon|American Wigeon}} * {{IUCN_Map|22680163|Anas americana}}
{{Taxonbar|from1=Q28106685|from2=Q703790}}
Category:Mareca Category:Wigeons Category:Birds of Canada Category:Birds of the United States Category:Birds of the Dominican Republic Category:Birds of Haiti Category:Birds described in 1789 Category:Taxa named by Johann Friedrich Gmelin