[2] The male has a blue-grey head with a vertical white crescent in front of the eyes.

The common name for the species Spatula rhynchotis is Australasian shoveler no matter which country it is found in.

[4] Courtship in New Zealand starts around August which involves vocalisations from the drake (male) accompanied with head-bobbing whilst swimming toward the duck (female).

Often several drakes will pursue an already paired duck: Generally the mated males are aggressive and will not tolerate this behavior from the bachelors, and fighting may ensue.

There is a clear and unexplained sex ratio difference with a lot more males to females.