Editing Common pochard (section)

== Distribution and habitat ==
Their breeding habitat consists of [[Marsh|marshes]] and lakes with a metre or more water depth. Pochards breed in much of temperate and northern [[Europe]] and across the [[Palearctic]]. They are [[Bird migration|migratory]], and spend winter in the south and west of Europe.{{sfn|Madge|Burn|1988|p=248}}

In the [[British Isles]], birds breed in eastern [[England]] and lowland [[Scotland]], in small numbers in [[Northern Ireland]] with numbers increasing gradually, and sporadically in the [[Republic of Ireland]], where it may also be increasing. While uncommon, individuals are also occasionally seen in the south of England, and small populations are sometimes observed on the River Thames. Large numbers stay overwinter in [[Great Britain]], after the birds retreat from [[Russia]] and [[Scandinavia]].{{sfn|Madge|Burn|1988|p=248}}

Common pochards have been seen as [[Vagrancy (biology)|vagrants]] in [[North America]], especially in the [[United States]] and [[Canada]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-01-18 |title=Report a Rare Bird |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110118224253/http://www.narba.org/default.aspx/MenuItemID/104/MenuGroup/Home.htm |access-date=2025-03-09 |website=web.archive.org}}</ref> In [[South America]], a record of the species exists from [[Colombia]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=de Schauensee |first=Rodolphe Meyer |date=1959 |title=Additions to the "Birds of the Republic of Colombia" |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4064506 |journal=Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia |volume=111 |pages=53–75 |issn=0097-3157}}</ref>