dabbling duck

Dictionary: dab·bling duck (dăb'lĭng)

n.
Any of various ducks, chiefly of the genus Anas, including the mallards, teals, and shovelers, that feed by dabbling in shallow water and are favored as game birds.

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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: dabbling duck

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Common, or northern, pintail (Anas acuta). (credit: © Lawrence E. Naylor — The National Audubon Society Collection/Photo Researchers)

Any of about 43 species (tribe Anatini; including 38 species in genus Anas) of ducks found worldwide, chiefly on inland waters and most commonly in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Strongly migratory, dabbling ducks include some of the world's finest game birds: the black duck, the gadwall, the garganey, the mallard, the pintail (perhaps the world's most abundant waterfowl), the shoveler, the teals, and the wigeons. They feed mainly on water plants, which they obtain by tipping-up in shallows and infrequently by diving. They often forage near the shore for seeds and insects. They have a flat, broad bill, float high in the water, and are swift fliers. Males are slightly larger and more boldly coloured than females.

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WordNet: dabbling duck

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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: any of numerous shallow-water ducks that feed by upending and dabbling
Synonym: dabbler
Antonym: diving duck (meaning #1)

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	Anas platyrhynchos
	Pintail
	Bronze-winged

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		Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more
		Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
		WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. Read more