Southern Pochard
Encyclopedia
The Southern Pochard is a duck
.
There are two subspecies, the South American (Southern) Pochard N. e. erythrophthalma (Wied-Neuwied, 1833) and the African (Southern) Pochard N. e. brunnea (Eyton
, 1838).
The South American Pochard has a fragmented range and is found from Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Argentina to Chile. Here it occurs in a wide variety of shallow fresh waters with submerged vegetation, from the lowlands up to 3,700 metres.
The African Pochard occurs from the Cape to the Ethiopian highlands on water bodies with or without emergent vegetation. They are suspected to have been strong migrants in the past but the construction of numerous farm dams seems to allow them a more sedentary lifestyle. They reach highest concentrations in Africa's central plateaus and in the south-western winter rainfall region.
This bird is sociable and gregarious. It has been seen in groups of up to 5,000. The clutch consists of six to fifteen eggs.
Duck
Duck is the common name for a large number of species in the Anatidae family of birds, which also includes swans and geese. The ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the Anatidae family; they do not represent a monophyletic group but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered...
.
There are two subspecies, the South American (Southern) Pochard N. e. erythrophthalma (Wied-Neuwied, 1833) and the African (Southern) Pochard N. e. brunnea (Eyton
Thomas Campbell Eyton
Thomas Campbell Eyton JP, DL was an English naturalist whose fields were cattle, fishes and birds. He was a friend and correspondent of Charles Darwin though he opposed his theories....
, 1838).
The South American Pochard has a fragmented range and is found from Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Argentina to Chile. Here it occurs in a wide variety of shallow fresh waters with submerged vegetation, from the lowlands up to 3,700 metres.
The African Pochard occurs from the Cape to the Ethiopian highlands on water bodies with or without emergent vegetation. They are suspected to have been strong migrants in the past but the construction of numerous farm dams seems to allow them a more sedentary lifestyle. They reach highest concentrations in Africa's central plateaus and in the south-western winter rainfall region.
This bird is sociable and gregarious. It has been seen in groups of up to 5,000. The clutch consists of six to fifteen eggs.