Australian Shelduck x Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna tadornoides x Tadorna ferruginea
Shelduck hybrids occur often in captivity and sometimes also in the wild (where Ruddy Shelduck x Common Shelduck is probably most frequent, at least in Europe). Many are difficult to identify with certainty but in the following captive bird the extensive orange plumage points to Ruddy Shelduck or Cape Shelduck as one parent, and the orange tones on the head suggest Ruddy over Cape. Although some Ruddy Shelduck x Common Shelduck hybrids have grey vermiculated body feathers the darkness of this one suggested either Paradise Shelduck or Australian Shelduck. The contrastingly clean orange breast is probably indicative of Australian rather than Paradise and the fact that a single male Australian Shelduck was in the same collection (along with several of both Ruddy and Cape Shelducks) lends weight to this theory.
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captive presumed Australian Shelduck x Ruddy Shelduck hybrid (with Ruddy Shelduck), Grange-over-Sands (Cumbria, UK), 28th December 2011 |
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I returned to the collection a year later and although I couldn't find the Australian Shelduck I presume to be its parent there, the hybrid was still present:
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captive presumed Australian Shelduck x Ruddy Shelduck hybrid (with Ruddy Shelduck), Grange-over-Sands (Cumbria, UK), 27th December 2012 |
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