Lakes, ponds, rivers, potholes, woodland pools and surrounding uplands. They are among the largest ducks found in North America. They arrive at Canadian nesting grounds in late March or early April from the Central or Southern U.S. and Mexico. Dabblers or surface feeders, they eat wetland vegetation, seeds molluscs, crustaceans, insects and larvae. The male is easily identified by its iridescent green head, white collar greenish-yellow bill and orange legs and feet.
Females wear brown and buff.
Both have distinctive white underwings with blue speculum markings in their rear edges. In late summer or early fall, they will start for their wintering grounds, but won't go any further south than necessary.