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Not too long ago, we talked about the difference between female Redheads and female Canvasbacks (http://ayearofbirding.com/2014/01/21/female-redheads-vs-female-canvasbacks/). Why don’t we talk about the males? When you look out at a distant raft of Canvasbacks, there are usually a few Redheads mixed in. So how do we tell the difference?
Here’s a couple of Redheads:
Notice the grayish body, the rounded back, and most of all the black-tipped, blue bill. While the lighting may impact how whitish or grayish the body looks, the blue bill is the give-away. In fact, a nickname for the Redheads is the Blue-bill.
Here is a female and male Canvasback – the male is in the front:
Notice how the back is whiter and less rounded, how the forehead slopes into the bill, and most importantly, notice the black bill. Additionally, when they are side-by-side, the Canvasback is the bigger duck.