| Maccoa Duck | |
|---|---|
| O. maccoa, male | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Anseriformes |
| Family: | Anatidae |
| Subfamily: | Oxyurinae |
| Genus: | Oxyura |
| Species: | O. maccoa |
| Binomial name | |
| Oxyura maccoa (Eyton, 1838) |
|
The Maccoa Duck (Oxyura maccoa) is a small (48-51 cm) long African stiff-tailed duck.
Adult males have a chestnut body, a blue bill and a black head. Adult females have a grey-brown body, with a dark grey bill and a dark brown crown, nape and cheek stripe.
This duck breeds in two main areas: eastern Africa from Sudan and Ethiopia to Tanzania and west to eastern Zaire, and southern Africa from Zimbabwe to Cape Province, South Africa. Their breeding habitat is shallow fresh waters, and they are also found in brackish and saline lakes in winter.
Rarer than previously believed, it is uplisted from a species of Least Concern to Near Threatened status in the 2007 IUCN Red List.[1]