Ruddy Shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea) lives in wet grasslands across Europe, Asia, Africa. It feeds on insects and plants. Its conservation status is Least Concern.
Fascinating facts about the Ruddy Shelduck
- Ruddy shelducks form lifelong pairs and often build nests far from water, in cliff crevices, tree holes or ruined buildings. A typical clutch holds about eight eggs, which the female incubates alone for roughly four weeks; both parents then rear the chicks until they fledge about eight weeks after hatching.
- Globally, the species numbers between 170,000 and 225,000 individuals, a size that keeps it out of the IUCN's threatened categories. Yet regional trends diverge: populations in central and eastern Asia are steady or even rising, while European numbers keep slipping as wetlands disappear. This split shows how local habitat loss can erode a species that is otherwise thriving worldwide.
- When conditions are right, ruddy shelducks can mass in spectacular numbers: over four thousand birds have gathered on Nepal's Koshi Barrage and in the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, and more than ten thousand have been counted at Lake Düden in Turkey.
- In Europe the ruddy shelduck can become an invasive force: Switzerland's population exploded from 211 birds in 2006 to 1,250 a decade later, threatening native waterfowl. A feral colony in Moscow, descended from zoo escapees after 1948, has multiplied over twenty-fold since the 1990s, reaching about 3,300 birds by 2025. These rapid expansions illustrate how human-altered landscapes can turn a once-migratory duck into a permanent urban resident.
- At up to 70 cm long and a wingspan that can stretch to 135 cm, the ruddy shelduck yet its orange-brown body is sliced by a stark black tail and flight feathers that flash against bright white wing-coverts.
Sources
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At a glance
RangeEurope, Asia, Africa
HabitatWet grasslands
DietInsects and plants
About the Ruddy Shelduck
As the sun rises over the wetlands, the Ruddy Shelduck emerges, its burnished plumage glowing like embers as it waddles through the shallows, its webbed feet leaving gentle impressions in the soft mud. With a soft, whistling call, it takes to the skies, its wings beating in a slow, powerful rhythm as it soars overhead, its V-formation a testament to its remarkable migrations, which take it across vast expanses of Asia and Europe. In its gentle, unassuming way, the Ruddy Shelduck is a master of the wild, navigating the delicate balance of its ecosystem with ease and elegance.
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