The Northern Shoveler is impossible to mistake once you notice its bill — an enormous, spatula-shaped spoon that seems far too big for the bird. The drake is boldly colored, with an iridescent green head, a white chest, bright rusty flanks, and a golden eye, while the hen is a mottled brown that shares the same oversized bill. That bill is the key to the species' lifestyle: its edges are lined with fine comb-like structures that strain tiny food from the water like a baleen whale.
Shovelers feed with the bill skimming the surface, often swimming in circles or in coordinated groups to stir up food, filtering out crustaceans, plankton, and seeds. They favor shallow, nutrient-rich waters — marshes, ponds, and even sewage lagoons — where such small prey is abundant. In Michigan they are chiefly spring and fall migrants, with a modest number breeding in wetlands and a few lingering into winter where water stays open.
Filters tiny aquatic invertebrates, plankton, and seeds from the water using the comb-like lamellae that line its huge spatula-shaped bill. It often skims the surface with the bill, swims in tight circles, or feeds in groups to stir food into the water column where it can strain it out.
Its oversized, spatula-shaped bill is lined with fine comb-like structures (lamellae) that strain tiny crustaceans, plankton, and seeds from the water, letting the shoveler filter-feed much like a baleen whale.
Groups of shovelers sometimes swim in tight circles to create a small whirlpool that draws food up from below, making it easier to strain from the water. They also skim the surface with the bill lowered.
The huge spatula bill is diagnostic in any plumage. Drakes add a green head, white chest, and rusty sides; hens are mottled brown but still show the same distinctive oversized bill.
Juveniles and eclipse males are mottled brown and can show a patchy mix of rust and green as they molt, sometimes looking oddly two-toned. The oversized spatulate bill identifies them regardless of plumage.
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