Eurasian Wigeon (Anas penelope) is a common winter visitor to the wetlands of west and
north India, less common in east and south.
Identification: Eurasian Wigeon has a round head, thin bill, steep forehead with slightly
curved shape on the back of the head, narrow neck, and pointed tail and wing tips. Basic coloration
is brown eyes, blue-gray legs & feet, white belly and upper middle coverts, blue bill with a
black tip, black nostrils, and a green speculum on each wing. In the non-breeding season, the male
Wigeon has white upper wing coverts and a dark chestnut-brown head, neck, flanks, and chest. In
breeding season the male's breeding plumage is distinguished by a pale gray back & sides, gray
wings with black tips, a white patch on each wing, black tail, pink-purple chest, a red head with
light yellow crown, and a slightly tinted green patch near each eye. The female has two color phases
of gray-brown and rufous. Gray-brown phase shows a dark brown body and wings with gray axillaries,
brown head and neck, and dark brown color around eyes. The rufous stage shows a rust-brown colored
head, neck, sides, chest and back.
Weight: Male 720 gm; Female 650 gm Size: 50 cm Local names:
Peason, Patari Food: mainly vegetable matter, seeds, shoots, also insects
and molluscs
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