Ring-necked Duck: This medium-sized diving duck has black upperparts, a weakly tufted, purple-black head, black neck, upper breast and tail, cinnamon collar, white lower breast and belly, pale gray sides, and a blue-gray bill with a white ring near the black tip. Ring-necked duck breeding grounds extend from Alaska and extend all across southern, central and eastern Canada. In summer on freshwater marshes, ponds, and bogs, mainly in openings in forested country.

Unique to diving ducks, Ring-necked Ducks prefer shallow wetlands fringed with emergent, submerged or floating vegetation like wild celery, bulrush, pondweed and pond lily.

Upland-nesting ducks include most of the dabbling ducks such as blue-winged teal, mallards, northern pintails, gadwalls, and American wigeon. The hen has tan sides, a brown back and a less prominent ring on its bill.

Both sexes have a gray bill with white ring and black tip, dark grayish with greenish iridescence on shoulder of wing and a dull pearl gray speculum.
They are generally shallow divers when feeding, so do not require deep water. Despite the name, the ring on its neck is almost never visible.

As with many birds, the duck's name was first made at …


Wintering habitats extend across the central and southern United States as well as deep into Mexico. A much better field mark is the ring on the bill.

Ducks and Geese: Habitat: Wooded lakes, ponds; in winter, also rivers, bays.

The ring-necked duck (Aythya collaris) is a diving duck from North America commonly found in freshwater ponds and lakes. Although it mixes freely with other diving ducks on large lakes in winter, the Ring-neck is also found on small, tree-lined ponds, and associating with dabbling ducks on shallow waters. The white triangle in front of the wing is visible from a distance. The Female Ring-necked Duck can be distinguished from the scaups by the thin, white eye-ring that trails back to her ear, and the peaked shape of her head, as well as by differing habitat. Overwater nesters consist primarily of diving ducks like redheads, canvasbacks, greater scaup, and ring-necked ducks. Like other bay ducks (pochards, or diving ducks), ring-necked ducks dive underwater. Ring-necked Ducks are omnivores and feed mainly by diving or dabbling at the surface. The ring-necked duck is medium-sized.Males have a purplish iridescent head, black back, white belly and reddish ring around the neck. Unpaired ducks showing up on breeding grounds will most likely end up being non-breeders. Generally dependent on permanent wetlands in forested habitats, the Ring-necked Duck favors wetlands that are less than 1.5 m in depth, that maintain stable water levels throughout the breeding season, and that have abundant stands of emergent, submerged, and floating vegetation along the shoreline and within open-water areas. A strong and fast flier, it is able to take flight by springing up directly from the water, without the laborious take-off run of most diving ducks. The Ring-necked Duck is a small to medium-sized diving duck with distinctive white bill markings and a short crest that gives its head an angular profile.

Ring-necked Duck Aythya collaris, Adult Male, Photo Credit: Dave Hawkins Ironically, the ring on the neck of the Ring-necked Duck is not visible in the field. Total length and mass: male - 40 to 46cm, 542 to 910 g; female - 39 to 43 cm, 490 to 894 g. Male slightly larger than female. The species is native to North America, but sightings outside of the continent are increasingly common. Even though this species dives for its food, you can find it in shallow wetlands such as beaver swamps, ponds, and bays. The Ring-necked Duck’s breeding habitat is wooded lakes or ponds in the northern United States and Canada.

Females are rich brown with a delicate face pattern.

Feeds on submerged plants and aquatic invertebrates.

Habitat and range.

Feeds on submerged plants and aquatic invertebrates. The Ring-necked duck is an uncommon migrant seen mainly during spring and fall migrations in freshwater, marshes and the swamps of the Refuge. Greater Yellowlegs Their breeding habitat is bogs and marshes in the boreal forest region of Canada and Alaska. Ring-necked Ducks nest in small, wooded ponds in boreal forests and some prairie regions.