What’s Up With the Bobblehead Duck?

The bobblehead duck, the small plastic figure that pops up to greet you when you walk into a sports arena or concert hall, has become a popular memento of many special occasions. You may even have one yourself, or at least you probably know somebody who does. But what’s the deal with this duck that has become a cultural touchstone? The answer may surprise you.

The duck is the Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola), a small American sea duck of the genus Bucephala, the goldeneyes. The bufflehead’s unique head color—a combination of gray and black with a single white patch on the back of the head—makes it easy to identify at a distance. The feathers of this diving duck shimmer iridescent in the sun and can take on a purple hue as they rise from the water.

In the wild, buffleheads live in ponds, lakes, and slow-moving rivers of central Alaska to eastern Canada. Their breeding habitat is open coniferous or mixed forest, with a preference for burned areas and aspen groves. They nest in cavities in trees and bushes, and the male and female take turns tending the eggs.

Buffleheads feed by diving and consuming the fish, crustaceans, and mollusks they find underwater. They are often seen bobbling in the water during the nonbreeding season, but they can also fly with rapid wingbeats. They form small to medium-sized flocks when they’re not breeding.

A fairly common migrant and winter resident in Tennessee, the bufflehead is the smallest of our diving ducks. In flight, the adult male has a dark body with a white patch on the back of its head; the female is subdued gray-brown and has a neat, single white cheek patch. This duck can be very difficult to see, but it can be heard: the male has a squeaky whistle; the female emits a soft, hoarse quack.

Like other hole-nesting ducks, the Bufflehead nests in cavities, usually in old woodpecker holes excavated by Northern Flickers. It is less sociable than other ducks and rarely is seen in large flocks.

Learn more about how climate change is affecting the population of this bird at Audubon’s Survival By Degrees project. Use our tool to select a temperature scenario and see how the population of this species will respond over time. We’re leveraging 140 million birds’ observations and sophisticated models to help you better understand how warming temperatures will affect wildlife. Click here to learn more.