---
title: "Mandarin Duck"
description: "Aix galericulata — Birds. The mandarin duck (Aix galericulata) is a perching duck species native to East and Northeast Asia."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/mandarin-duck
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Mandarin Duck

> Aix galericulata — Birds. The mandarin duck (Aix galericulata) is a perching duck species native to East and Northeast Asia.

- Scientific name: *Aix galericulata*
- Category: `birds` (Birds)
- Habitats: `forest` (Forest), `freshwater` (Lakes & rivers), `zoo` (Zoo & pets)
- iNaturalist observations: 27309
- Wikidata: [Q200339](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q200339)
- iNaturalist taxon: [7106](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/7106)

## Names

- en: Mandarin Duck
- de: Mandarinente
- es: Pato mandarín
- fr: Canard mandarin
- nl: Mandarijneend
- pl: Mandarynka

## Countries with the most observations

GB (5465), DE (4625), CN (2008), RU (1759), KR (1578), US (1143), PL (993), IT (940), FR (749), JP (647), AT (508), CZ (494)

## Summary

The mandarin duck (Aix galericulata) is a perching duck species native to East and Northeast Asia. It is sexually dimorphic; the males are elaborately coloured, while the females have more subdued colours. It is a medium-sized duck, at 41–49 cm (16–19 in) long with a 65–75 cm (26–30 in) wingspan. It is closely related to the North American wood duck, the only other member of the genus Aix. 'Aix' is an Ancient Greek word which was used by Aristotle to refer to an unknown diving bird, and 'galericulata' is the Latin for a wig, derived from galerum, a cap or bonnet. Outside of its native range, the mandarin duck has…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandarin_duck

## Photo

![Mandarin Duck](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/mandarin-duck/medium.jpg)

Photo: Steven Smethurst · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/82123105

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/mandarin-duck?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).