Dendrocygna viduata
The White-faced Whistling Duck breeds in sub-Saharan Africa and much of South America. It does not migrate across the Atlantic Ocean so perhaps a small group of birds colonized one continent from the other. This species is gregarious, and at favored sites the flocks of a thousand or more birds arriving at dawn are an impressive sight. They are often found in association with the Fulvous Whistling duck.
Although the White-faced Whistling Duck has the long neck and legs of other tree ducks, it does not spend much time perched in trees but prefers sand banks. It behaves more like a goose or swan than a typical duck. As the name implies, these are noisy birds with a clear three-note whistling call.
Picture taken in the Detroit Zoo (Michigan), in August 2003.
Genus Dendrocygna
Tribe Dendrocygnini
Subfamily Anserinae
Family Anatidae
Order Anseriformes
Class Aves
Subphylum Vertebrata
Phylum Chordata
Kingdom Animalia
Life on Earth
Index