Eurasian wigeon

    Anas penelope

Castilian: Silbón europeo

Catalan: Ànec xiulador

Gallego: Asubiador

Euskera: Ahate txistularia

CLASIFICACIÓN:

Orden: Anseriformes

Family: Anatidae

Migratory status: Winter resident

CONSERVATION STATUS:

This species does not belong to any protection category.

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THREATS

Loss of habitat due to the acidification of water and the decrease in vegetation.

Length / size: 42-50 cm / 71-85 cm

Identification: Medium-sized bird, with a grey bill and green speculum. During mating season, the male's head and neck are chestnut brown, his crown is yellow, his chest slightly pinkish and his back vermiculated grey. The female, just like the rest of the anatids, is brownish, but the grey bill and green speculum mentioned earlier are quite distinctive.

Song: As its name indicates, it makes a high-pitched whistle, "eeuuu", which ends abruptly.

Diet: Its diet is vegetarian, and it feeds on plants, roots, and bulbs which it cuts with its bill. Sometimes it submerges its head and neck underwater in order to reach submerged plants.

Reproduction: Courtship begins at the end of winter, and once the mate has been chosen, the pair goes to the breeding site. They usually place the nest in a hole in the ground, near the water but hidden in the scrub; it is surrounded by twigs, leaves, grass and is covered with down. Hatching is synchronous and the chicks feed themselves shortly after being birth.

HABITAT

When wintering, it prefers intertidal areas, estuaries, etc. whereas during breeding season, it is found in shallow freshwater areas where there is little emerging vegetation.

DISTRIBUTION

In Spain: Abundant populations arrive and they are distributed throughout the coastal areas (marshes of the Guadalquivir, Ebro Delta, Valencia lagoon, etc.) and in interior wetlands (Aragon, Castile-La Mancha, and Extremadura).

In Castile and León: The most notable populations are those of the Ebro swamp (Burgos), Villafáfila (Zamora), the Rosarito swamp (Ávila), and the La Nava lake (Palencia).

Movements and migrations: The European populations are migratory and in winter they go to the British Isles, France and Spain. In our country, the populations that arrive at the end of summer come from Siberia, Iceland and the Scandinavian countries.

POPULATION

In Spain: There is an estimated population of 54000 wintering specimens.

In Castile and León: There is an estimated population of 1580 wintering specimens.