Harlequin Duck Facts

The harlequin duck is not a typical duck in that it frequents either fast-moving brooks or streams or lives on the water near the potentially treacherous rocky coastlines of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The harlequin duck is a colorful bird that goes by the names of circus duck, painted duck and even sea mouse, for the odd squeaking sounds it makes. The harlequin duck is essentially a sea bird, yet it will head inland when it comes time to breed.

  1. Male Identification

    • The male harlequin duck has a slate-blue body with white bands on its neck and on its chest. These bands possess lines of black that border them, and the male has a white patch near its ear and a larger white one near its eye. This crescent-shaped patch is in the front of the bird's eye; another white stripe exists on the bird's neck, running up and down. On the top of the duck's head is a black streak that has amber and white borders. The flanks of the male are a chestnut color and the bluish wings have white bars on them.

    Female Identification

    • The female of this species of duck has a brown body with a whitish belly that contains brownish spots and flecks. A round white spot exists behind the duck's ear. The white patches in the front of the eye are less vivid on the female than on the male, and some females will have a series of white streaks on the back of their heads.

    Size

    • Both sexes of the harlequin duck are between 13 and 21 inches in length and have a wingspan that measures from 22 to 26 inches wide. The average harlequin duck has a weight between 17.6 and 25.6 oz., according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology All About Birds website.

    Diet

    • The diet of the harlequin duck consists of such insect larvae as those of the caddisfly, mayfly, stonefly and blackfly when the duck resides in its forest stream and river home during the breeding season. The duck will also take the opportunity to eat fish eggs in these settings. Once on the coast, the harlequin duck will ride the waves close to the rocks and then snatch snails, barnacles and limpets loose from them to consume. The "National Audubon Field Guide to Birds" states that this duck will also dive into the ocean to catch fish, shrimp and crabs to supplement their diets.

    Geography

    • The geographic range of the harlequin duck extends from Alaska and the Yukon Territory down through British Columbia and into states such as Washington, Oregon, Wyoming and Idaho in the West. The duck lives in the East from Baffin Island in Canada southwards to places such as Labrador and Maine. The eastern ducks will often spend the winters in the waters off Long Island and many stay in the Penobscot and Jericho Bays along the Maine coast. The harlequin duck leaves its coastal home to breed in forest streams and rivers.