Cinnamon Teal

The cinnamon teal is a colorful duck that is found in the western portions of North and South America. It is the only duck that has separate breeding populations on each of the continents. In North America they breed in the western United States and Mexico. Their breeding does not extend as far east as most other species of western ducks, ending before the center of the US. In South America they breed primarily in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru. Most of the birds that breed in the US migrate to Mexico or the California coast for the winter. Most the birds that breed in Mexico and South America are year round residents of theri breeding ground. 

As with many species of ducks the male cinnamon teal is much more colorful then the female. The ducks in the photos above are both male. The female is a mottled brown with a brown eye color. The female looks similar to the females of many other species of ducks. The reason that females are not as bright as the males is because they need to blend in while they are on the nest. The cinnamon teal nest on the ground near the water. The nest is covered from all sides by vegetation hiding it from predators on the ground and in the air. The female helps keep the nest hidden by accessing it through tunnels in the vegetation. Clutch size is about 4-15 eggs. The young leave the nest for the water with in days of hatching.

Cinnamon Teal

Our Yellowstone and Snake River trip this year provided me an opportunity to add several new birds to my photographic life list. One of these birds was the cinnamon teal. Cinnamon teal are not very rare in North America during the summer, however they are mostly found in the western half of the continent. So it is very unusual to see one here in Minnesota or any of our neighboring states.

Cinnamon teal can be found in marshy wetland habitats. They are a dabbling duck that eats seeds and vegetation on top of and under the water. They usually nest in strands of vegetation hiding the nest so that it can not be seen from any angle, including above. The male cinnamon teal, shown above, is a rusty red with bright red eyes. The female is much more plain colored, which helps her hide with the nest, and looks similar to other types of female ducks. We photographed this duck swimming in Yellowstone River in Hayden Valley.