Harlequin duck

The harlequin duck gets its name from the decorated appearance of the male harlequin, because it resembles the colorful costumes worn by "harlequins", who were people dressed as clowns. 

The male duck has dark, blue plumage, highlighted in black-outlined white striping and spots of white. Its wing-tips are brownish black and its flanks are chestnut-red. The female duck is not as colorful as the male duck. It is uniformly brown and it's marked by three pale patches on its face. 

The

harlequin ducks have a buoyant, compact body, with strong webbed feet, which give the duck the power to swim through torrent waters. They are expert swimmers. When they fly, their wings beat rapidly. The harlequin duck weighs 1 to 1.5 pounds and is about 1 to 1.5 feet long. Its wing span is 2 to 2.3 feet in width.

The harlequin duck reaches sexual maturity at two years old. It breeds during May-August. The female duck lays anywhere from 5 to 7 yellowish colored eggs. She sits on the eggs for 27 to 29 days and covers the eggs with down, when she's away from the nest. The chicks hatch within a few hours of one another and are able to swim and feed soon after they are hatched. The ducks like to nests by fast flowing rivers, by the edge of the water. Their nests are well hidden and are made from a hollow lined with grass and down. Young chicks fledge (get their feathers) after 35-42 days. The male duck stays with the female until she is finished incubating.

They live in flocks of up to 50 in the Atlantic and in larger groups in the Pacific, except when breeding. They are sociable birds. They don't often mix with ducks of other species.