Red Shoveler (Spatula platalea)

Order: Anseriformes | Family: Anatidae | IUCN Status: Least Concern

red_shoveler
Age: Adult | Sex: Male | Loc. Unknown

red_shoveler
Age: Adult & Chicks | Sex: Female & Unknown | Loc. Southern Brasil

red_shoveler
Age: Adults | Sex: Males & Female | Loc. Argentina

red_shoveler
Age: Adult | Sex: Male | Loc. Argentina

Identification & Behavior: ~48.5 cm (19 in). The male Red Shoveler has a pale brown head, pale iris, and reddish body spotted with black. The female is uniformly brown with black mottling and scaling. Both sexes have a large dark spoon-shaped bill. Both sexes have a large patch of blue on the upperwing but it is more saturated on the male. It forages at shallow edges of bodies of water. It is similar to the Cinnamon Teal and Nothern Shoveler.

Status: The Red Shoveler is a rare Austral migrant found in the high Andes at elevations ranging from 3200 to 4400 m. It is also a vagrant to the coastal wetlands in Southwest Peru. The Red Shoveler also occurs in Bo, Br, and Ch.

Name in Spanish: Pato Cuchara Rojizo.

Sub-species: Red Shoveler (Spatula platalea) Vieillot, 1816.

Meaning of Name: Anas: L. duck. Spatula: L. Spoon, in reference to the shape of the bill.

Formerly known as Anas platalea (2017).

See more of the Family Anatidae   peru aves

Distribution Map
red shovelerVoice

References:

    • Species range based on: Schulenberg, T. S., D. F. Stotz, and L. Rico. 2006. Distribution maps of the birds of Peru, version 1.0. Environment, Culture & Conservation (ECCo). The Field Museum.  http://fm2.fieldmuseum.org/uw_test/birdsofperu on 11/09/2014.