Size: Length: 37-41 cm. Wing Span: 58-69 cm.
 
Distinguishing characters:

Male (breeding): Has a white stripe curving from above eye to nape, contrasting with black-brown forehead and crown, golden-brown foreneck flecked white, black-brown mantle to upper tail-coverts. Scapulars long, glossy black, with a broad white median stripe, wing coverts bluish-grey.

Male (eclipse): More or less like female, but glossier. Bill remains reddish and legs yellow.


Female: Drab-coloured, has a brown head with noticeable whitish eyebrows, white throat, and a distinct dark line from the bill through the eye to nape, underparts dark brown. Wing coverts greyish brown. Speculum similar to male but rather unclear and more olive. Prominent brown-speckled. Bill Dark-grey to black, legs dull grey.

Young/Immature: Resembles female but darker with browner underparts. Lacks the white eyebrow, if present, not distinct.

Similar Species in India: Males in breeding plumage are distinctive, but females, youngs and males in eclipse plumage are very similar to many other dabbling duck species found in India. Garganey can be best told apart from all other similar species (i.e. Gadwall, Falcated Duck, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Northern Shoveler, Common Teal, Baikal Teal, and Andaman Teal) by its broad white eyebrow and unique colour of its speculum.