Silver teal
Spatula versicolor (Vieillot, 1816)
The silver teal (Spatula versicolor) is a species in the family Anatidae, order Anseriformes. Recorded adults weigh 380 g to 595.2 g. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.
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Quick facts about the silver teal
- Weight
- 380 g – 595.2 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- Not recorded
- Diet
- Herbivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- wetlandsrc for Habitat
- Young per litter or clutch
- 7.7src for Young per litter or clutch
- Lifestyle
- Aquaticsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Partialsrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the silver teal live?
Not recorded
What is the silver teal?
The silver teal or versicolor teal (Spatula versicolor) is a species of dabbling duck in the genus Spatula. It breeds in South America.
Between April and June they prefer reed beds and will lay 6 to 10 creamy-pink eggs. The eggs will hatch after 25 to 27 days. As with swans and geese, both parents will rear the ducklings. A pair may bond long term. It lives on fresh water in small groups, and feeds primarily on vegetable matter such as seeds and aquatic plants.
The silver teal's range includes southern Bolivia, southern Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, South Georgia, South Sandwich Islands, and the Falkland Islands. The southernmost birds migrate to southern Brazil in the winter.
Silver teals are on the whole placid ducks but may be protective of eggs, young and females.
From the Wikipedia article “Silver teal” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Silver_teal&oldid=1380705202), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the silver teal endangered?
The silver teal is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the silver teal classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderAnseriformes
- familyAnatidae
- genusSpatula
- SpeciesSpatula versicolor (Vieillot, 1816)
Other names and names in other languages (40)
- بط فضيArabic
- حذف فضيArabic
- xarxet encaputxatCatalan
- čírka modrozobáCzech
- Corhwyaden arianWelsh
- PampaandDanish
- PampasandDanish
- SilberenteGerman
- BuntschnabelenteGerman
- VersicolorenteGerman
- kapuĉanasoEsperanto
- Pato capuchinoSpanish
- Cerceta capuchinaSpanish
- pampa-üllpartEstonian
- خوتکای نقرهایPersian
- kalottitaviFinnish
- Canard barioléFrench
- Sarcelle barioléeFrench
- Ype kirîGuarani
- modrokljuna patkaCroatian
- ezüstréceHungarian
- Itik perakIndonesian
- Alzavola argentataItalian
- ギンイロシマアジJapanese
- sidabrinė antisLithuanian
- SülveraanteLow German
- ZilvertalingDutch
- sølvandNorwegian
- srebrzanka modrodziobaPolish
- marreca-cricriPortuguese
- marrequinha-multicolorPortuguese
- Разноцветный чирокRussian
- kačica striebristáSlovak
- Srebrna krdžaSerbian
- silverandSwedish
- Kırçıllı ÖrdekTurkish
- чирянка чорноголоваUkrainian
- Mòng két bạcVietnamese
- 銀鴨Chinese
- 银鸭Chinese
Relatives of the silver teal
Other species in the same genus Spatula.
Northern shoveler
Spatula clypeata
Garganey
Spatula querquedula
Blue-winged teal
Spatula discors
Cinnamon teal
Spatula cyanoptera
Red shoveler
Spatula platalea
Blue-billed teal
Spatula hottentota
CompareSilver teal vs Northern shovelerSilver teal vs GarganeySilver teal vs Blue-winged tealSilver teal vs Cinnamon teal
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the silver teal?
An adult silver teal weighs 380 g – 595.2 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the silver teal endangered?
The silver teal is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.
What kind of animal is the silver teal?
The silver teal (Spatula versicolor) belongs to the family Anatidae in the order Anseriformes.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Silver teal (Spatula versicolor). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/silver-teal
“Silver teal (Spatula versicolor).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/silver-teal.
@misc{silver_teal_2026,
title = {Silver teal (Spatula versicolor)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/silver-teal},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}