Columbus Audubon thanks Laura Dornan and the Canton Audubon Society for their kind permission to republish this article.
Some ducks that whistle rather than quack, among them male Greater and Lesser Scaup, American Wigeon and Blue-winged Teal, are in fact ducks. But whistling-ducks in the genus Dendrocygna, or “tree swan”, are more closely related to geese and swans. There are eight species of whistling-ducks worldwide but only two are found in North America: Fulvous and Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks (BBWD, Dendrocygna autumnalis). Whistling-ducks do not have the down underlayer that keeps other ducks, geese & swans warm so they are found primarily in the Gulf Coast states and further south. But in recent years they have begun to expand their ranges.
Whistling-ducks are unique in several ways. Unlike the true ducks, both sexes have identical plumage and they form long-term pair bonds, lasting several breeding seasons, with both sexes incubating and caring for the young, like geese and swans. But unlike geese and swans, BBWD breed during their first year. They were formerly known as tree ducks as they are seldom very far from trees and, similar to a few other true ducks, they often nest in tree cavities and will use nest boxes. But unlike those tree nesting ducks, BBWD will also nest on the ground in dense low growth near water. They have also nested in chimneys and barns.
As mentioned, BBWD have been expanding their range, with breeding populations now found in Arizona, Arkansas, Mississippi, Oklahoma and South Carolina added to those in Florida, Louisiana and Texas. And now, we can add Ohio to the list! For a few years BBWD have been seen in several counties in the state: Lake, Lucas, Marion, Ottawa, Preble, Richland, Stark and Summit. But these visits have been of short duration. That changed on September 8th when an Amish farmer in Wayne County, near Wooster, saw a duck he did not recognize on his pond. He asked his neighbor, a young avid birder, for help and the teenager identified the Black-bellied Whistling-duck with 10 ducklings in tow! This is the first ever sighting of BBWD breeding in Ohio. The young man quickly put protective fencing around the pond and cut a path through the weeds to make the site accessible to birders and the Miller family began to welcome birders, several from Canton Audubon, who are excited to see this first-in-Ohio event.
By the next day one of the ducklings had already succumbed to a probable snapping turtle and on Sep 18th, the number was down to 8, where it still stands as of October 7th, 2022. But there is room for concern. As stated earlier, both the male and female BBWD normally care for the brood but these ducklings are only attended by one parent. What’s more this nesting has taken place 3 months past the normal nesting season. It has been determined that the young ones should be ready to fly around November 2nd. Will they be able to survive that long? Will that date be soon enough to migrate successfully? Will they be able to fly well enough to make that long migration? Only time will tell and we will probably never know the answers.
Many pictures have been taken of this family and can be viewed on e-Bird by using the EXPLORE button, searching Black-bellied Whistling-duck and click Observations with Photos. By clicking on each photo, you can find the ones taken in Wayne County.
Sources: Ducks Unlimited Magazine, Nov/Dec 2021; Wild Ohio 2022; Lives of North American Birds by Kenn Kaufman; Stokes Field Guide to the Birds of North America
