Ruddy Shelduck
Tadorna ferruginea
- Family
- Ducks, Swans, and Geese (Anatidae)
- Order
- Anseriformes
Overview
The ruddy shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea) is a bird species in the family Anatidae. It is a distinctive waterfowl, 58 to 70 cm (23 to 28 in) in length with a wingspan of 110 to 135 cm (43 to 53 in). It has orange-brown body plumage with a paler head, while the tail and the flight feathers in the wings are black, contrasting with the white wing-coverts. It is a migratory bird, wintering in the Indian subcontinent and breeding in southeastern Europe and central Asia, though there are small resident populations in North Africa.
Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Range and habitat
Breeds Iberian Peninsula and Mediterranean northern Africa eastward through southern Russia to eastern China and in the south through Türkiye to Tibetan Plateau including Ladakh; winters to Ethiopia, southern India, and southeastern Asia; introduced in central Europe and the Canary Islands, and appears frequently elsewhere.
Range description: AviList Global Avian Checklist.
Countries
- Afghanistan
- Albania
- Algeria
- Armenia
- Austria
- Azerbaijan
- Bangladesh
- Bhutan
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Bulgaria
- China
- Cyprus
- Czechia
- Denmark
- Egypt
- Ethiopia
- Finland
- Georgia
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- India
- Iran
- Iraq
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Kazakhstan
- Kyrgyzstan
- Laos
- Moldova
- Mongolia
- Morocco
- Myanmar
- Nepal
- Netherlands
- Oman
- Pakistan
- Palestine
- Poland
- Romania
- Russia
- Saudi Arabia
- Somalia
- South Korea
- Spain
- Sudan
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Syria
- Tajikistan
- Thailand
- Tunisia
- Turkey
- Turkmenistan
- Ukraine
- United Arab Emirates
- Uzbekistan
- Western Sahara
- Yemen
Sources and further reading
- Wikipedia: Ruddy shelduck
- eBird: sightings, maps and photos
- xeno-canto: sound recordings
- Birds of the World: full species account (subscription)
- BirdLife DataZone: status and threats
- IUCN Red List (threat status)
- AviList global checklist (taxonomy)
Last updated September 29, 2026.