Dendrocygna guttata
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The spotted whistling duck (Dendrocygna guttata) is a member of the duck family Anatidae. It is also referred to as the "spotted tree duck". This duck can be found in Indonesia, New Guinea, Australia and the Philippines. Spotted ducks are also held in captive populations.
The Spotted whistling duck is one of the smaller species in the genus Dendrocygna. This duck grows to 43–50 cm tall. Males can weigh anywhere from 590g to 650g while females weigh 610g to 860g. White spots on their flanks and breasts gave these ducks the spotted name. The sides of the neck, faces, and eyebrows are all grey. Black or dark brown coloring stretches from the crown nape to the hindneck. This dark coloring is also found in the eyepatch. Their coloring resembles a cape with a thick collar. This cape starts as a light brown then fades into a darker brown closer to the tail. Their underbelly is mostly brown, sometimes spotted, and significantly lighter than the wings and the "collar." A white bar on the upper tail coverts can be seen during flight aiding in identification. They have dull pink legs with black webbed feet and sharp nails. The bill is dark, yet often seen with portions of red... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Raja Ampat | 🇮🇩 Indonesia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Spotted Whistling-Duck sighting in Raja Ampat on a given day, based on 65 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 125th most-seen of the 200 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February and July–August
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Spotted Whistling-Duck in Raja Ampat on a given day, against under 5% in March–June and September–January, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Spotted Whistling-Duck sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 2
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Spotted Whistling-Duck sightings, Raja Ampat ranks 2nd at under 5%. The best odds are in Daintree National Park (Australia, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Spotted Whistling-Duck is recorded against all the birds logged in Raja Ampat (65 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.
