Eurasian Teal
Anas crecca
Also known as: Common Teal, Teal, Eurasian Green-Winged Teal X American Green-Winged Teal, Eurasian Teal X Green-Winged Teal
Habitat
Aquatic
Diet
PlantSeed
Active Time
Diurnal
Size
342 g
About This Species
This small dabbling duck favours shallow wetlands, marshes and slow rivers, where it feeds by dabbling and upending in mud and shallow water, often in tight-knit flocks. The male shows a chestnut head with a distinctive green eye patch, while both sexes have a bright green speculum visible in flight. Autumn through winter, when numbers swell with migrants at wetland reserves, offers the most reliable viewing.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Keep to hides, paths or a reasonable distance from resting and feeding flocks, since flushing waterfowl repeatedly wastes energy they need for migration and winter survival.
- Wild bird protection laws apply across its range in Europe and Asia, generally prohibiting deliberate disturbance, though specific rules and hunting regulations vary considerably by country and season.
- Moving slowly and staying low near open water reduces the chance of flushing the flock.
Seasonal Activity
6,973,852 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Anseriformes
- Family
- Anatidae
Traits
- Diet
- PlantSeed
- Foraging
- Aquatic
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Body mass
- 342 g
Photo
(c) Daniel Pineda Vera, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Daniel Pineda Vera
CC-BY-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.