White-headed Duck

The white-headed duck occupies a fragmented range extending from southern Europe and northern Africa through western and Central Asia to western China. It inhabits comparatively deep freshwater or brackish lakes and marshes where dense reed beds or other emergent plants border areas of open water. Adults are compact, heavy-bodied diving ducks with stiff tails. Breeding males have a white head, black crown, and swollen blue bill, while females and non-breeding males are browner and more cryptically patterned. (Animal Diversity Web)

These diving ducks feed on aquatic insect larvae, crustaceans, mollusks, worms, seeds, and other plant material, taking much of their food from or near the bottom. Breeding occurs among dense emergent vegetation, where the female constructs a concealed nest close to water. Clutches contain four to nine eggs, commonly five or six. The female performs incubation for approximately twenty-two to twenty-four days without regular assistance from the male. Ducklings are precocial and enter the water soon after hatching under their mother’s protection. (Animal Diversity Web)