widgeon

Male (rear) and female (front) Eurasian Wigeons

Male (front) and female (rear) American Wigeons

Male (rear) and female (front) Chilöe Wigeons

Wigeon are dabbling ducks in the genus Anas. There are three species: the Eurasian Wigeon (Anas penelope), the American Wigeon (A. americana) and the Chilöe Wigeon (A. sibilatrix). Widgeon is an alternative, though archaic, spelling; the American Wigeon has in the past been known as Baldpate.

Morphology

All three are similarly shaped, with a steep forehead and bulbous rear to the head. Males have a distinctive breeding plumage, in their eclipse plumage they resemble females, which are similar in appearance year-round.^{[citation needed]}

Taxonomy

The three species' closest relatives within the genus Anas are the Gadwall and the Falcated Duck.^[1]

Hybridisation

All three wigeon species hybridise in captivity,^[2] and American and Eurasian Wigeons hybridise in the wild.^[3] An American Wigeon × Mallard hybrid has also been recorded ^[4]

Footnotes

References

• Bailey, H. H. (1919) An interesting hybrid of Mareca penelope (Widgon) and Mareca americana (Baldpate) Wilson Bulletin 31:25
• Harrison, J. M. and J. G. Harrison (1968) Wigeon × Chiloe Wigeon hybrid resembling American Wigeon British Birds 61: 169-171
• Watson, G. E. (1970) A presumed wild hybrid Baldpate × Eurasian Wigeon The Auk 87: 353-7
• (Japanese) Shiota, T. (1987) [A challenge in the identificaiton of hybrid American and Eurasian Wigeon] Yacho 496:6, 18-19
• Carey, Geoff J. (1993) Hybrid male wigeon in East Asia Hong Kong Bird Report 1992 160-6
• Fedynich, Alan M. & Olin E. Rhodes, Jr. (1993) Mallard × American Wigeon Hybrid on the Southern High Plains of Texas The Southwestern Naturalist, Vol. 38, No. 2 (Jun., 1993), pp. 179-181, doi:10.2307/3672079 [1]
• Harrop, Andrew (1994) Photo-forum: a presumed hybrid American Wigeon in Grampian Birding World 7:116-7
• MacKay, Andrew (1996) Hybrid wigeon resembling American Wigeon in Leicestershire Birding World' 9:146-7
• Jiguet, Frédéric (1999) Photo-forum: hybrid American Wigeons Birding World 12(6):247-52

External links

Photographs of hybrid wigeons can be seen here and here.