Feeding. The canvasback eats leaves, buds and roots of bay grasses, particularly wild celery. It has adapted to feed on snails, macoma clams, insect larvae and other small invertebrates due to declining bay grass acreage. It dives to find its prey.

Are canvasbacks good to eat?

Diet determines flavor, but no matter what they eat, canvasbacks taste different from other ducks. Their meat is a rich crimson, their skin a pinkish buff, their fat a ghostly ivory. Earlier this fall I cooked some ducks for my friends Chris and his friend's family while I was staying in North Dakota.

How long do canvasback ducks live?

The oldest wild canvasback captured was 22 years and 7 months old, the next longest recorded lifespan in a wild canvasback was 16 years 11 months.