"All About Birds" says this about the Northern Shoveler -
"Perhaps the most outwardly distinctive of the dabbling ducks, the Northern Shoveler inhabits wetlands across much of North America. Its elongated, spoon-shaped bill has comblike projections along its edges, which filter out food from the water."
I totally concur with this assessment!
A couple cool facts about the Northern Shoveler from 'All About Birds' -
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• The bill of the Northern Shoveler is about 6.5 cm (2.5 inches) long. The bill has has about 110 fine projections (called lamellae) along the edges, for straining food from water.
•The oldest recorded Northern Shoveler was a male, and at least 16 years, 7 months old when he was found in Nevada. he had been banded in California.