Northern shoveler

There is no mistaking the shoveler. The huge, spoon-shaped bill gives the duck a top-heavy profile, and the drake wears a green head, a white chest, and rusty sides. It often swims slowly with the bill held low, skimming the water’s surface.

The wide bill is lined with comb-like plates that strain tiny crustaceans and seeds from the water. Shovelers sometimes feed in groups, swimming in tight circles to stir up food from the bottom. They nest on the ground in grassy areas near shallow prairie wetlands, and most pass through Manitoba in spring and fall on their way between the north and the southern United States.

Here are some of my favourite frames of this bird.

Photos

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