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Bird

Mallard

Anas platyrhynchos

Lives in Alabama all year and nests here. Found in all 67 counties, across 13 habitats.

Here
All year
Nesting
Nests here
Range
All 67 counties
Habitats
13

At a glance

Group
Birds
Here
All year
Nesting
Nests here
Range
All 67 counties
Habitats
13
Habitat models
Summer, Winter

Where it lives

The places its habitat model includes. It is not found everywhere a habitat occurs.

Habitats in Alabama 13

Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 13

Coastal dunes and beaches

White Sand Bluffs, on Santa Rosa Island, Near Pensacola
WinterUnconsolidated Shore (Beach/Dune)George Catlin, White Sand Bluffs, on Santa Rosa Island, Near Pensacola (1834-35): high white dunes with scattered clumps of dune plants above the Gulf. Shown: Santa Rosa Island near Pensacola, Florida, a neighboring state.White Sand Bluffs, on Santa Rosa Island, Near Pensacola, George Catlin (1796-1872), 1834-1835. Public domain. Source record.

Coastal Plain hammocks

In the Jungle, Florida
SummerSouthern Coastal Plain Hydric HammockWinslow Homer, In the Jungle, Florida (1904): cabbage palms, saw palmetto and fallen trunks in a dense, shady hammock, with a wildcat in the branches. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Florida (Winslow Homer, In the Jungle, Florida, 1904), a neighboring state.In the Jungle, Florida, Winslow Homer, 1904. Public domain. Source record.

Coastal tidal marshes (salinity not stated)

On the San Sebastian River, Floridalabel QS:Len,"On the San Sebastian River, Florida"
SummerWinterMartin Johnson Heade, On the San Sebastian River (c. 1883-90): a tidal river winding through flat marsh under storm clouds at sunset. Shown: San Sebastian River, St. Augustine, Florida, a neighboring state.On the San Sebastian River, Floridalabel QS:Len,"On the San Sebastian River, Florida", Martin Johnson Heade, c. 1883-1890. Public domain. Source record.

Freshwater marshes

The Great Florida Marsh
SummerSouthern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Nupea ModifierMartin Johnson Heade, The Great Florida Marsh (1886): open marsh and lily-dotted water beneath live oaks and cabbage palms. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Florida (Heade, The Great Florida Marsh, 1886; North Carolina Museum of Art), a neighboring state.The Great Florida Marsh, Martin Johnson Heade, 1886. Public domain. Source record.

Pine savannas

Beautiful Savannah in the Pine Woods of Florida
WinterEast Gulf Coastal Plain Savanna and Wet PrairieGeorge Catlin, Beautiful Savannah in the Pine Woods of Florida (1834-35): an open grassy savanna with a shallow pond, ringed by tall pines, with palmettos and red wildflowers. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Pine woods of Florida (George Catlin, 1834-35; Smithsonian American Art Museum), a neighboring state.Beautiful Savannah in the Pine Woods of Florida, George Catlin, 1834-1835. Public domain. Source record.

Ponds, lakes and their shores

Florida Sunrisetitle QS:P1476,en:"Florida Sunrise"label QS:Len,"Florida Sunrise"
SummerWinterOpen Water (Fresh)Martin Johnson Heade, Florida Sunrise: still water and a palm-fringed shore glowing at dawn. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Florida (Heade, Florida Sunrise, c. 1890-1900), a neighboring state.Florida Sunrisetitle QS:P1476,en:"Florida Sunrise"label QS:Len,"Florida Sunrise", Martin Johnson Heade, c. 1890-1900. Public domain. Source record.

Streams, rivers and their banks

Blue Spring, Florida
SummerWinterSouth-Central Interior Small Stream and RiparianWinslow Homer, Blue Spring, Florida (1890): clear blue spring water under overhanging palms. Shown: Blue Spring, Florida (Winslow Homer, 1890; National Gallery of Art), a neighboring state.Blue Spring, Florida, Winslow Homer, 1890. Public domain. Source record.

Swamps

Florida, Sunset on the Ocklawaha
SummerWinterSouthern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Taxodium Modifier; Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Bay/Gum Modifier; Southern Coastal Plain Seepage Swamp and Baygall; East Gulf Coastal Plain Tidal Wooded Swamp; Central Interior and Appalachian Swamp Systems; Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp; Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Cypress Dome; Southern Piedmont/Ridge and Valley Upland Depression SwampFlorida, Sunset on the Ocklawaha (1899): a dark swamp-lined river at sunset, with cypress and hardwoods crowding both banks. Shown: Ocklawaha River, Florida, a neighboring state.Florida, Sunset on the Ocklawaha, Detroit Photographic Co. (chromolithograph), 1899. Public domain. Source record.

Coastal Plain seepage bogs

Open, wet, seepage-fed bogs of the Coastal Plain and Sandhills, often with pitcher plants.

SummerSouthern Coastal Plain Herbaceous Seepage Bog

Disturbed and introduced wetlands

Wet ground taken over by weedy or introduced plants after disturbance, such as common reed, Chinese tallow or tamarisk stands; the upland counterpart is roadsides, fields and disturbed ground.

Winter

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.

SummerWinterEast Gulf Coastal Plain Large River Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier; South-Central Interior Large Floodplain - Forest Modifier; Southern Piedmont Large Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier; Central Interior and Appalachian Floodplain Systems; Southern Piedmont Small Floodplain and Riparian Forest; South-Central Interior Small Stream and Riparian; East Gulf Coastal Plain Small Stream and River Floodplain Forest; Southern Coastal Plain Blackwater River Floodplain Forest; South-Central Interior Large Floodplain

Hardwood and oak flatwoods

Flat, poorly drained uplands and terraces with oaks, sweetgum and sometimes loblolly pine, wet in winter and dry in summer, but neither a floodplain nor a swamp.

SummerSouth-Central Interior / Upper Coastal Plain Wet Flatwoods

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

WinterOnly within 250 m of water.Developed, Open Space; Cultivated Cropland
Other habitats in its models (56)

Land cover, or classes with no habitat page in Alabama. Those recorded in Alabama first, the rest by region.

Elsewhere in the South (27)
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Brownwater Stream Floodplain Forest Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Central Fresh-Oligohaline Tidal Marsh Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Embayed Region Tidal Freshwater Marsh Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Indian River Lagoon Tidal Marsh Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Large Natural Lakeshore Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Small Blackwater River Floodplain Forest Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Small Brownwater River Floodplain Forest Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Southern Tidal Wooded Swamp Summer and winter.
  • Central Florida Herbaceous Pondshore Winter.
  • Central Florida Herbaceous Seep Winter.
  • East-Central Texas Plains Riparian Forest Winter.
  • Florida Big Bend Fresh-Oligohaline Tidal Marsh Summer and winter.
  • Floridian Highlands Freshwater Marsh Summer and winter.
  • Mississippi River Bottomland Depression Summer.
  • Mississippi River Low Floodplain (Bottomland) Forest Summer and winter.
  • Mississippi River Riparian Forest Summer.
  • South Florida Everglades Sawgrass Marsh Winter.
  • South Florida Freshwater Slough and Gator Hole Winter.
  • South Florida Wet Marl Prairie Winter.
  • Southern and Central Appalachian Bog and Fen Summer.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Large River Floodplain Forest Summer and winter.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Near-Coast Large River Swamp Summer and winter.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Nepheline Syenite Glade Winter, only within 250 m of water.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Calcareous Prairie Winter, only within 250 m of water.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Seepage Swamp and Baygall Summer and winter.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Small Stream and River Forest Summer and winter.
  • Western Great Plains Floodplain Summer.
Northeast (2)
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Northern Fresh and Oligohaline Tidal Marsh Summer and winter.
  • North-Central Interior Wet Flatwoods Summer and winter.
Midwest (2)
  • Western Great Plains Open Freshwater Depression Wetland Summer.
  • Western Great Plains Saline Depression Wetland Summer.
Land cover and other classes (25)
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Blackwater Stream Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Clay-Based Carolina Bay Forested Wetland Summer.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Clay-Based Carolina Bay Herbaceous Wetland Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Depression Pondshore Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Nonriverine Swamp and Wet Hardwood Forest - Oak Dominated Modifier Summer.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Nonriverine Swamp and Wet Hardwood Forest - Taxodium/Nyssa Modifier Summer.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Streamhead Seepage Swamp - Pocosin - and Baygall Summer and winter.
  • Central Interior and Appalachian Shrub-Herbaceous Wetland Systems Summer and winter.
  • Developed, Low Intensity Winter, beside its main habitat.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Large River Floodplain Forest - Herbaceous Modifier Summer and winter.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Southern Depression Pondshore Summer and winter.
  • Eastern Great Plains Floodplain Systems Summer and winter.
  • Eastern Great Plains Wet Meadow, Prairie, and Marsh Summer and winter.
  • Lower Mississippi River Bottomland Depressions - Forest Modifier Summer.
  • Mississippi River Floodplain and Riparian Forest Summer and winter.
  • Open Water (Aquaculture) Summer and winter.
  • South-Central Interior Large Floodplain - Herbaceous Modifier Summer and winter.
  • Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Clethra Modifier Summer.
  • Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Pine Modifier Summer.
  • Tamaulipan Riparian Systems Winter.
  • Texas-Louisiana Coastal Prairie Slough Winter.
  • Unconsolidated Shore Summer and winter.
  • Unconsolidated Shore (Lake/River/Pond) Summer and winter.
  • Western Great Plains Depressional Wetland Systems Summer and winter.
  • Western Great Plains Floodplain Systems Summer and winter.

All habitats

Seasons in Alabama

  • Year-round: nests here, in 16 of 67 counties.
  • Winter: does not nest here, in 62 of 67 counties.

Food plants

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Plants matched by genus.

Native plants in these genera 266

Plant genera in its diet records (24)
  • Potamogeton Seeds and leaves. 9 diet records. 10 native plants in Alabama
  • Carex Seeds. 5 diet records. 140 native plants in Alabama
  • Lemna 3 diet records. 4 native plants in Alabama
  • Ceratophyllum Fruit and seeds. 2 diet records. 2 native plants in Alabama
  • Echinochloa Seeds. 2 diet records. 1 native plant in Alabama
  • Myriophyllum Seeds. 2 diet records. 3 native plants in Alabama
  • Polygonum Seeds. 2 diet records. 4 native plants in Alabama
  • Sagittaria Seeds and roots. 2 diet records. 12 native plants in Alabama
  • Schoenoplectus Seeds. 2 diet records. 8 native plants in Alabama
  • Scirpus Seeds. 2 diet records. 8 native plants in Alabama
  • Sparganium Seeds. 2 diet records. 1 native plant in Alabama
  • Stuckenia Seeds and roots. 2 diet records. 1 native plant in Alabama
  • Beckmannia Seeds. 1 diet record. 0 native plants in Alabama
  • Bidens Seeds. 1 diet record. 10 native plants in Alabama
  • Brasenia Seeds. 1 diet record. 1 native plant in Alabama
  • Chara 1 diet record. 0 native plants in Alabama
  • Hippuris Seeds. 1 diet record. 0 native plants in Alabama
  • Najas Seeds. 1 diet record. 2 native plants in Alabama
  • Persicaria Seeds. 1 diet record. 11 native plants in Alabama
  • Quercus Seeds. 1 diet record. 46 native plants in Alabama
  • Scolochloa Seeds. 1 diet record. 0 native plants in Alabama
  • Triticum 1 diet record. 0 native plants in Alabama
  • Zannichellia Seeds. 1 diet record. 1 native plant in Alabama
  • Zizania Seeds. 1 diet record. 1 native plant in Alabama

Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.

Also found in its main habitats

Its main habitats in Alabama, by how much of its habitat model each one is, with the birds most characteristic of each and the plants that grow wild there. Shared habitat, not food.

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Birds 104

Plants 418

All of floodplain and bottomland forests in Alabama

Swamps

Birds 102

Plants 327

All of swamps in Alabama

Coastal tidal marshes (salinity not stated)

Birds 84

Plants 35

All of coastal tidal marshes (salinity not stated) in Alabama

USGS Gap Analysis Project habitat models.

Sources