Ducks II

The female Northern Pintail is another female duck with a quack-like call (see Ducks I). This bird was with a male on a pond at Lostwood NWR in North Dakota (May).











Several thousand Northern Pintail congregate at Pedricktown Marsh in New Jersey in late winter. The males have a squeaky call and a brrp call (with Canada Goose, Feb, NJ).


On the sonagram there is a tent-like image of the squeaky call above each brrp.












Male burps with female rattling calls (Feb, DE).













The male Green-winged Teal has a brrp call similar to that of the Northern Pintail but a little higher. Note also the rattling calls of the female, similar to those of Northern Pintail but again higher (one hour after sunset, Mar, NJ).











The female has a 4-7 part laughing or decrescendo call (Mar, NJ).

female and male calls








This female was barking (Mar, NJ).











Female Green-winged Teal calls, with male Green-winged Teal and Northern Pintail calls (compare the burps; male Gadwall towards end, Feb, DE)



Quiet calls by feeding Green-winged Teal (Feb, DE).














Female Common Merganser taking off: the call is a short, guttural quack (Mar, NJ).












The Northern Shoveler male has a unique took call (May, ND).












This is a pair, the female has a short quack (May, ND).

female and fainter male calls










These are the calls of a male Long-tailed Duck on a pond along the Dalton Highway in Alaska (Lesser Yellowlegs calling, June).











gup call











Harlequin Ducks winter off the jetty at Barnegat Lighthouse in New Jersey every year. The calls can be heard above the slapping of the waves.
(male, Dec)











(female, Dec)











The male Black Scoter courtship call is a mournful whistle. Other sounds include a staccato noise heard during the "forward rush" display, when a male paddles rapidly while crouching low in the water (2,20,43,66,111,145s), and wing whistling (27,34,38,118s).
(Mar, NJ)

whistle











whistles (time scale reduced)








forward rush sound








wing whistling (at 5-6kHz)










In contrast to Black Scoters, Surf Scoters are mostly non-vocal. This female had five silent males in tow. She occasionally called (Mar, NJ).












Calls by a group of female Common Eiders (July, ME).












Common Goldeneye male head-throw display call. An apparently unpaired male associating with a pair (Feb, NJ)












Buffleheads do not often vocalize, but this lone female called frequently (Nov, PA).