This teal is less common in the Park than the Blue-winged Teal (Anas discors), but this is a common migrant in area lakes and reservoirs outside the Park boundary. The lack of suitable habitat (standing or slow-moving water) inside the Park best explains the small number of sightings in the Park. This species may be more common during migration in the reservoirs along the Park's southwestern boundary than is reported.

Records for this species in the Park are from the Little River at Metcalf Bottoms (October 31, 1938; Stupka 1963), a storm-killed individual on Newfound Gap Road in early November, 1950 (Ibid.), and a single drake in Abrams Creek in Cades Cove, January 1991.

References:

Stupka, A. 1963. Notes on the Birds of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville.

Gough, G. A., Sauer, J. R., Iliff, M. Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter. 1998. Version 97.1. Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD.