Common Teal
Common Teal

In the MANO-RIVER, Shiga, Feb. 3, 1997.

Not only in the MANO-RIVER near my home in Shiga but also in the TOMIO-RIVER near my mother's home in Nara, a lot of common teals come over every winter. Seeing the birds basking in the sun on the concrete bank, I also feel sleepy. Night herons sometimes join teals, the herons look cold while the teals look warm.
@Males of mallards are called "green-head" in Japan because they have a green head wholly, but males of common teals have a brick-red head with a green line as shown in the above photo. Of the three in the photo, the bird looking gray-brown is a female.
I hear the species is the smallest of ducks.

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