Birda Logo
Features
Birda+
About
Species Guide
Challenges
Shop
loading...
A photo of a Maned Duck (Chenonetta jubata), male
Maned Duck, Male

Maned Duck

Chenonetta jubata

The Australian wood duck, also known as the maned duck or maned goose (Chenonetta jubata), presents a unique visage reminiscent of a diminutive goose. This species, measuring between 45 to 51 centimeters, is notable for its grazing habits and is typically observed in flocks.

Identification Tips

Males of the species exhibit a grey plumage with a dark brown head and a mottled breast, while females are distinguished by white stripes above and below the eye, coupled with mottled underparts. Both sexes possess grey wings with black primaries and a distinctive white speculum. The juveniles bear a resemblance to the adult females but are paler with a more streaky breast.

Habitat

The Australian wood duck favors grasslands, open woodlands, and wetlands, including flooded pastures and coastal inlets and bays. It thrives in agricultural landscapes with dams and is a common sight in urban parks and near rice fields, sewage ponds, and deeper lakes.

Distribution

This species is widespread across Australia, including Tasmania, and has been known to appear as a vagrant in New Zealand, where a breeding pair was recorded in recent years.

Behaviour

The Australian wood duck is a ground forager, rarely seen on open water, and shows a preference for dabbling in shallow water or grazing in grasslands and crops.

Song & Calls

The female's call is a distinctive, loud, and rising croaky "gnow" sound, whereas the male's call is smoother, shorter, and higher-pitched. Flocks may also engage in staccato chattering.

Breeding

Breeding occurs in tree cavities or nest-boxes situated above or near water bodies, where the female lays a clutch of 9–11 cream-white eggs. The female incubates the eggs, while the male stands guard. Upon hatching, ducklings leap to the ground from the nest and follow their parents.

Diet and Feeding

The diet consists primarily of grasses, grains, clover, other herbs, and occasionally insects.

Similar Species

The Australian wood duck can be differentiated from pygmy geese, which are smaller with bold white face markings, and from whistling ducks, which have longer legs and necks. In flight, it is the only duck with white secondary feathers and dark wingtips.

Conservation Status

The Australian wood duck is classified as Least Concern, with numbers on the rise due to its adaptability to various environments, including those altered by agriculture and urban development.

App logo
Birda is a birdwatching app and community aimed at curious people who want to deepen their connection with nature.

Maned Ducks on Birda

Photos
Sightings

More Ducks, Geese, Swans

A photo of a Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) , male

Mandarin Duck

Aix galericulata
Birda Logo

Your birdwatching journey like never before

Connect with nature in minutes
Take a walk, look out of the window and log the birds that you see. Feel good about those little connections to nature.
Discover the joy of birding
Find new birding spots, see more birds, share and celebrate with a like-minded community of nature lovers.
Play your part in saving nature
Logging your birding sightings and sessions turns into positive action for our planet. Every sighting counts.

Birda Blog

What Our Birders Say
Jake W
Great app
I use this app all the time as it’s quick and easy to log individual sightings or whole birding sessions. It’s an excellent way to meet new people and the forum is full of really friendly people. The challenges are a great way to get involved and learn more about birds. Cannot recommend it enough!
Alex J
Friendly and helps to identify birds
Great birding app, good for logging your sightings, also has nice species guide. I'm enjoying the social aspect more than I expected, everyone seems friendly and helps to identify unknown birds. Good mix of newbies and experienced users.
Marlster24
Recommend for any bird watcher
Very wholesome app: I joined this app with a new interest in watching birds to help me find out what I was spotting. The community is very active in helping identify birds which is great and everyone is very kind so it’s just a nice wholesome community. I would definitely recommend this for any bird spotter 😃
Nick S
Work together with community
Been loving using this app to log my bird sightings and work together with community members to identify different birds. I've already learned a lot since I started about a month ago!
Talli A
My favourite app
As a young birdwatcher who was always keen to be apart of a community but never seemed to find one, my problem was solved downloading this!!! Everyone is so friendly and just as excited to see birds as me 😁
Tralisalandhoop
Fantastic app - Love it!
Love this app and have used it almost daily. Lots of species information and easy to use. Love seeing birds spotted by other users in the UK and worldwide.
Leonie
We've been waiting for an App like this
Excellent! We've been waiting for an app like this! Thank you! It would be nice if you could assign additional birds to sessions later!
Anonymous
The best bird logging app
Birda is honestly the best bird logging app I have seen. I love all the features it has from being able to do a session and log all the birds you see in one sitting, to being able to connect with other birders from all over the globe!
Nicole
Gets me outdoors more
I'm still loving this app. I use it most days & gets me outdoors more. Enjoying watching others progress and photo's, it's improved my wellbeing.... I love this app! I can keep a record of sightings and see what others have seen too.
Unbridled Discoveries
Great app for bird lovers
I love this app! It’s a wonderful way to track birding sessions, and also connect you with fellow birders. I also really like the unidentified bird section, it’s a great community tool to help figure out what a never-before-seen bird is!
As featured in
Birda Logo
AboutPressAmbassadorsAffiliatesInfluencersCareersPrivacyTerms & Conditions
An app for birdwatchers
Connect with us
Copyright © 2024 Chirp Birding. All rights reserved.