Behavior
The Laysan Duck walks and runs well, with a pelvic girdle adapted to terrestrial foraging. Energetic foraging behavior includes a fly-snapping sprint through Neoscatella sexnotata brine fly swarms. With necks outstretched, and bills close to the ground, the ducks run along a mudflat and as clouds of flies rise up in front, snap them up by rapidly opening and closing their bills. The ducks also will dabble and filter feed along lake shallows, shore, and in upland vegetation for macroinvertebrates, algae, leaves, and seeds. During the day, and especially in the breeding season, they prefer to hide among the grass and shrub vegetation, helping them to avoid avian predators such as frigatebirds. They prefer to venture out in the open and feed on the lake from dusk til dawn, although there seems to be marked variation from year to year according to the availability of food items.
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