Eurasian Teal
Anas crecca
Krikanden er en meget almindelig trækfugl i Danmark, men fåtallig som ynglefugl.
Our smallest . The drake has a chestnut head with a green teardrop mask behind the eye, a grey body with a white flank stripe and a buff triangle under the tail. Both sexes show a blackish-green speculum edged white.
Can be confused with
- Mallard — Mallard is far larger and heavier; the female Teal is told from a female Mallard by its much smaller size and blackish-green speculum (the Mallard’s is blue-violet).
Plumage and variation
Male and female: The female is yellowish-brown, densely streaked on head and neck — like a tiny female Mallard.
Summer and winter: The eclipse drake resembles the female but with darker upperparts and a grey bill.
Voice
The drake’s call is a clear whistled "cryc", not loud but very far-carrying; the female a feeble "keh" quack.
Behaviour
Dabbles, upends and grazes for seeds and small invertebrates — readily sieving mud through the bill. Outside breeding in flocks that fly fast and twisting like waders.
When and where
A very common passage bird but a scarce breeder (50–250 pairs, 2000), red-listed vulnerable; most are seen at the Wadden Sea, the Limfjord and Ringkøbing Fjord on passage and in winter.
Facts
Wingspan
59 cm
Conservation status
ikke truet
Relatives
Family
ducks, geese and swans
Anatidae
Order
waterfowl
Anseriformes
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