Baby Wood Ducks can survive falls of more than 40 ft. Male Wood Ducks are extremely territorial during the mating season, and aggressively protect the area around the female. Wood Ducks feed in shallow water and on forest floors. The adult Wood Duck s diet consist of nuts and fruits from forest trees, seeds, bur-reed, rice, arrow arum, wild rice, sedge, smartweeds, barnyard grass, aquatic invertebrates, and insects. Diet of young birds includes insects, aquatic invertebrates, small fish, and high protein animal material.
Courtship begins in the fall and continues through winter and spring.
During this period, Wood Ducks pair up and remain monogamous for the breeding season. The breeding season begins in April for the southern part of the range and in northern regions after the ice thaws. Older Wood Ducks begins mating earlier in the season, unlike the yearlings which mate toward the latter half of the breeding season. Wood Ducks nest in natural tree cavities, abandoned woodpecker s nests, and man-made nesting boxes. They always nest near woodland rivers, wetlands, and aquatic habitats which is essential to brood rearing.