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ALL: Have distinctive wide "spoon" shaped bill
ADULT MALE Has shiny green head (looks dark in poor light), white breast, and chestnut on flanks and belly. Vent is black and white and back is mainly dark. Note bright yellow eye. Eclipse male resembles adult female although body is more rufous and head is grayer.
ADULT FEMALE Has mottled buffy brown plumage and yellowish bill.
JUVENILE Similar to adult female.
Dimensions
Length: 17-20"
Voice
Male utters a sharp tuk-tuk; female utters a soft quack.
Discussion
Unmistakable, even in silhouette, due to long, flattened bill. Favors water margins with dense vegetation and moving quietly through open shallows, filtering food with bill. In flight, male shows blue forewing panel and white-bordered green speculum; female's wing pattern is similar, but blue is replaced by gray. Sexes are dissimilar in other respects.