Oxyura jamaicensis
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The ruddy duck (Oxyura jamaicensis) is a species of duck, one of six extant species of stiff-tailed duck (genus Oxyura). In the 1940s, the ruddy duck was introduced to the United Kingdom, where it established a population. Outside the Americas, the ruddy duck is considered a highly invasive species, prompting many countries to initiate culling projects to eradicate it from the native ecosystem.
The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek oxus meaning "sharp", and oura meaning "tail". The specific name jamaicensis means "from Jamaica". The ruddy duck has also been nicknamed "butterball", a term used to describe an individual that is somewhat fat, due to its short and stout stature making activities like flying and walking upright awkward.
The ruddy duck was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the other ducks, geese and swans in the genus Anas and coined the binomial name Anas jamaicensis. Gmelin based his description on the "Jamaica shoveler" that had been described in 1785 by the English ornithologist John Latham from a specimen that he... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ciudad Juárez | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 2 | Tijuana | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 3 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | León | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 5 | Las Vegas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 9 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Disney's Animal Kingdom | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | SeaWorld Orlando | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Busch Gardens Tampa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | San Diego Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | National Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Shedd Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Zoo Pilsen | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 9 | Parc des oiseaux | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 10 | Abilene Zoological Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Ecomuseum Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 12 | Zoo Miami | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 13 | Columbus Zoo and Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 14 | Bronx Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 15 | Sedgwick County Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 16 | The Maryland Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 17 | Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 18 | Birmingham Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 19 | Hellabrunn Zoo | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 20 | Saint Louis Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 21 | Berlin Zoological Garden | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 22 | San Francisco Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 23 | ZooTampa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 24 | Fort Worth Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 25 | Oregon Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 26 | Houston Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 27 | Centro Cicogne e Anatidi | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 28 | San Antonio Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 29 | Cleres Zoological Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 30 | Lincoln Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 31 | Biotropica | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 32 | The Abilene Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 33 | Discovery Cove | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 34 | Queens Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 35 | Bramble Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 36 | Bird Park Steinen | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 37 | St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 38 | Tracy Aviary | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 39 | Aquarium of the Pacific | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 40 | Aquarium of the Americas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 41 | Florida Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 42 | National Aviary | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 43 | Wonders of Wildlife Museum & Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 44 | Aquarium Berlin | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 45 | Bird Alliance of Oregon | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 46 | Tierpark Schlichtweg 15 in München | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 47 | Wild Bird Fund | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 48 | Zoo Schlichtweg 11 in München | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 49 | Zoo Siebenbrunner Straße 6 in München | 🇩🇪 Germany |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Ruddy Duck sighting in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve on a given day, based on 9 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 168th most-seen of the 187 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.
November
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Ruddy Duck in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve on a given day, against under 5% in December to October, the lowest months. That is one of Pacific Rim National Park Reserve's wettest months, with about 470 mm of rain against 40 mm in July.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Ruddy Duck sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
24th of 28
Of the 28 parks where we can rate Ruddy Duck sightings, Pacific Rim National Park Reserve ranks 24th at under 5%. The best odds are in Death Valley National Park (United States, about 40%), Channel Islands National Park (United States, about 40%) and Elk Island National Park (Canada, about 20%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Anatidae
The closest relatives of the Ruddy Duck that you can see in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve (family Anatidae, Ducks, Geese, and Swans) are Surf Scoter (about 40%), Common Merganser (about 20%) and Taiga Bean Goose (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Ruddy Duck is recorded against all the birds logged in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve (9 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
