Tadorna ferruginea
Silhouette: Rebecca Groom · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The ruddy shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea) is a bird species in the family Anatidae. It is a distinctive waterfowl, 58 to 70 cm (23 to 28 in) in length with a wingspan of 110 to 135 cm (43 to 53 in). It has orange-brown body plumage with a paler head, while the tail and the flight feathers in the wings are black, contrasting with the white wing-coverts. It is a migratory bird, wintering in the Indian subcontinent and breeding in southeastern Europe and central Asia, though there are small resident populations in North Africa. It has a loud honking call.
The ruddy shelduck mostly inhabits inland water-bodies such as lakes, reservoirs and rivers. The male and female form a lasting pair bond and the nest may be well away from water, in a crevice or hole in a cliff, tree or similar site. A clutch of about eight eggs is laid and is incubated solely by the female for about four weeks. The young are cared for by both parents and fledge about eight weeks after hatching.
In central and eastern Asia populations are steady or rising, but in Europe they are generally in decline. Altogether, the birds have a wide range and large total population, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed their conservation status as being of least concern. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kaziranga National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Chitwan National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 3 | Bale Mountains National Park | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | |
| 4 | Keoladeo National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park | 🇲🇳 Mongolia | |
| 6 | Ranthambore National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Royal Bardia National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 8 | Sierra de Guadarrama National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 9 | Satpura National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Jim Corbett National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 11 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 12 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 13 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 14 | Bandhavgarh National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 15 | Royal Manas National Park | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | |
| 16 | Fertő-Hanság National Park | 🇭🇺 Hungary | |
| 17 | Doñana National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 18 | Kanha National Park | 🇮🇳 India |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Agra | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Moscow | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 3 | Zhengzhou | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 4 | Tianjin | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 5 | Kazan | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 6 | Beijing | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 7 | Dalian | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 8 | Ulaanbaatar | 🇲🇳 Mongolia | |
| 9 | Visakhapatnam | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Bhopal | 🇮🇳 India |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Ruddy Shelduck sighting in Kota on a given day, based on 15 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 78th most-seen of the 123 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January and February
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Ruddy Shelduck in Kota on a given day, against under 5% in April–September and November, the lowest months. Those are among Kota's driest months, with about 5 mm of rain a month against 260 mm in August.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Ruddy Shelduck sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
16th of 45
Of the 45 cities where we can rate Ruddy Shelduck sightings, Kota ranks 16th at about 10%. The best odds are in Agra (India, about 50%), Moscow (Russia, about 40%) and Zhengzhou (China, about 30%).
Same family: Anatidae
The closest relatives of the Ruddy Shelduck that you can see in Kota (family Anatidae, Ducks, Geese, and Swans) are Indian Spot-billed Duck (about 30%), Lesser Whistling-Duck (about 10%) and Comb Duck (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Ruddy Shelduck is recorded against all the birds logged in Kota (15 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
