The South African Shelduck (Tadorna cana), or cape shelduck, is a species of shelduck, a group of large goose-like birds which are part of the bird family Anatidae, which also includes the swans, geese and ducks. This is a common endemic species to South Africa.
This is a 64 cm long bird which breeds in southern Africa, mainly in Namibia and South Africa. In the southern winter, many birds move north-east from the breeding range to favored molting grounds, where sizable concentrations occur.
This species is mainly associated with lakes and rivers in fairly open country, breeding in disused mammal holes, usually those of the aardvark.
Adult South African shelducks have ruddy bodies and wings strikingly marked with black, white, and green. The male has a grey head, and the female has a white face and black crown, nape, and neck sides. Note the color on the females head is highly variable. In flight they are hard to distinguish from Egyptian geese. Juveniles are duller in appearance. Young females lack the white on the head, excluding white eye circles. Males make a deep "honk" or "hoogh" call while the female tends to produce a louder, sharper "hark".
South African shelduck is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.
The genus name Tadorna comes from Celtic roots and means "pied waterfowl", essentially the same as the English "shelduck".]