The northern shoveler (Anas clypeata), a surface feeding duck, is named for its extraordinary oversized spatulate bill. Northern shovelers feed by dabbling and sifting in shallow water. The Northern Shoveler’s wide-flat bill is equipped with well-developed lamellae – small, comb-like structures on the edge of the bill that act like sieves, allowing the birds to skim crustaceans and plankton from the water’s surface. Northern Shovelers occasionally work together in groups while feeding, rotating like a pin-wheel, stirring up the surface water and skimming it for food particles.
