Ducks That Whistle

BirdNote^®

Ducks That Whistle

Written by Bob Sundstrom

Michael Stein: This is BirdNote.

A flock of gorgeous waterfowl flies above a marsh on the Texas coastline. Large and slender, they have bright pink bills and legs, chestnut necks and backs, and black underparts. Their wings flash boldly, black and white. And as they fly, they whistle.
 

[Black-bellied Whistling-Duck]
 

They’re called Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks, and they’re widespread in Central and South America. They’ve been easy to find in the U.S. along the western Gulf Coast and Florida. But they’re also expanding northward — they’ve been spotted nesting as far north as Wisconsin.

[Black-bellied Whistling-Duck]
 

The Black-bellied is one of eight species of whistling-ducks worldwide, in the tropics and subtropics. Whistling-ducks are anything but typical ducks, to which they’re only distantly related.  
Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks are monogamous, and the male and female look alike. At roost during the day, whistling-ducks will sometimes stand on tree branches, their long pink legs catching the sun. Late in the day, large flocks gather, then whistle their way overhead at sunset to nighttime feeding areas in fields or along the shore.  

[Black-bellied Whistling-Duck]

A lovely and vibrant spectacle, with unique sound effects.
For BirdNote, I’m Michael Stein.
 

Today’s show brought to you by the Bobolink Foundation.
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Senior Producer: John Kessler
Production Manager: Allison Wilson
Producer: Mark Bramhill
Associate Producer: Ellen Blackstone
Digital Producer: Conor Gearin
 

Bird sounds provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Black-bellied Whistling-Duck ML 74011581 recorded by P. Marvin, and Black-bellied Whistling-Duck ML 265770151 recorded by J. McGowan.
BirdNote’s theme was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.
© 2021 BirdNote      October 2021 January 2024

Narrator: Michael Stein 
 

ID# BBWD-01-2021-10-06      BBWD-01