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Story: Wetland birds

New Zealand scaup male

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New Zealand scaup male

The New Zealand scaup or pāpango is a short, round diving duck. The male is glossy dark brown and black with yellow eyes. The female is dark brown and often has a vertical white band at the base of the bill. They tend to avoid danger by diving rather than by flying.

Using this item

Private collection

by Christina Troup

This item has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research) and any published reproduction (print or electronic) may infringe copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user of any material to obtain clearance from the copyright holder.

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How to cite this page

Christina Troup, Wetland birds – Grey ducks, shovelers and scaup, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/14649/new-zealand-scaup-male (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Christina Troup, published 1 March 2009.

Comments

Brian Bailey
07 November 2012
We live in Halswell, Ch-Ch, opposite a small man made lake, where there is a pair of Scaup's settled. Are they likely to breed near other breeds of ducks, or not ?