Common Pochard

The common pochard is a plump, medium-sized diving duck 42–49 cm long with a wingspan of 72–82 cm, stocky and short-tailed, with a sloping forehead and relatively long bill. The male has a chestnut head and neck, a black breast and tail, and a pale grey body finely vermiculated; his bill is dark grey with a wide blue-grey band across the middle, and his iris is yellow-orange to red, brighter in the breeding season. Winter birds weigh 467–1,240 g (Wikipedia, general species account).

It is widespread across the Palearctic. It breeds primarily in Scandinavia and the steppe regions of Siberia, on marshes and lakes with a metre or more of water, and winters farther south and west. It does most of its feeding at night, and is a strong flier, reaching 49–54 mph in direct flight. SoIB 2023 rates it a High conservation priority: a winter migrant of wetlands with a rapid long-term decline of about 68%, a current decline of about 4% a year and a Large range (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).