pintail Anas acuta, a surface-feeding duck with a slender long neck and pointed tail. The average length of the male is 66 cm (26"). It is one of the most widely distributed and possibly the most abundant (but not in Britain) of all the Old World migratory ducks. It is one of the best for eating, for despite its maritime habitat, much of its feeding is on fresh water.
Being so widely distributed, the pintail is called by a number of different names both in the British Isles and in America (e.g. sea pheasant, cracker, lady-bird, Harlan).
