The Musk Duck (Biziura lobata) is a powerfully built duck found only in Australia. The male is Australia's largest duck. Adult males are 60 to 70 cm long and have a distinctive large, leathery lobe underneath the bill; females are 47 to 55 cm long and lack the lobe beneath the bill.
This species is a member of the 'still tail' group of ducks - and in some of the pictures you can see the fan like tail either sticking up, or being folded back over the top of the bird.
In 'Wildfowl' by Madge and Burn, (which is a bit of a classic!) this species is described as 'a large and bizarre Australian duck, one of the oddest of wildfowl' and its picture is shown on a plate labeled as 'Aberrant Ducks'!
Although these images are in black and white, there was almost no colour in the original pictures. A basically black duck under a heavy grey sky does not lend itself to lots of colour.
As both of these birds have a lobe beneath the bill, I assume that they are males. So this behaviour could either be just territorial or it could be some form of display to impress the females. My library is rather lack in detail on the behaviour of this species. There was a lot of leg slapping, tail contourtions and splashing going on.
As ever, to join in with WBW click on the link below. SM
Love these glimpses of the quirky Musk Duck!
ReplyDeleteHari OM
ReplyDeleteIntriguing! YAM xx
A new one to me..Interesting looking duck..I love your header..I think the dark colors are appealing to me..
ReplyDeleteI'm not so sure that a few starlings are worth sharing but they are the only birds I have to share for now
ReplyDeleteTheir unusual looks and lively displays make them sound like some of the most fascinating characters in Australia’s waterbird world
ReplyDeleteHello Stewart :)
ReplyDeleteThe Musk duck is so unusual with that lobe under the male's beak. Your photos show their strange behaviour and they seem fascinating to me.
All the best
Sonjia.
THe top shot with the splash is so great!
ReplyDeleteA very unusual looking duck Stewart. Thanks for hosting and commenting. Have a lovely week ahead
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting creature. I'm going to have to research this. Thank you! Aloha Stewart 🌺
ReplyDeleteSuch an unusual looking duck! Thank you for sharing it!
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