Cotton Pygmy Goose

Nettapus coromandelianus

Family: Ducks, Swans, and Geese · Status: Rare visitor · Size: 33–38 cm · Conservation: Least Concern

Range

Resident across the Indian subcontinent, southern China, mainland Southeast Asia, the Philippines, Indonesia, and northern Australia.

Identification

Male in breeding plumage has white head and neck, dark cap with green iridescence, black collar, white underparts with greyish flanks, and red eyes. In flight, shows iridescent green upperparts with broad white wing-bar on trailing edge of wing and dark wing-tips. In non-breeding plumage, plumage becomes more greyish-brown on the flanks and neck, with black collar absent. Female has dark-brown upperparts with a faint greenish gloss, greyish face with dark eyestripe, and light brown underparts with brown barring on the chest.

Habitat

Shallow freshwater water bodies with aquatic vegetation, including ponds and marshes.