Descriptor systems, which are also called differential-algebraic systems, singular systems, degenerate systems, constrained systems and so on, have been one of the major research topics in engineering field. However, problems related to the local stability and the Hopf bifurcation of nonlinear descriptor systems with time delay have not been thoroughly investigated. In this paper, we consider the dynamical behavior of twodimensional nonlinear descriptor systems with time delay. First, local stability of the system is analyzed using the location of the roots of the characteristic equation of the corresponding linearized system. It is well known that the equilibrium of the linearized system is locally asymptotically stable if all roots of the corresponding characteristic equation locate in the left half of the complex plane, and they are uniformly bounded away from the imaginary axis. Otherwise, the equilibrium is unstable. The conditions for the existence of Hopf bifurcation are investigated in detail by using the time delay as a bifurcation parameter. Furthermore, based on the descriptor and the "neutral-type" model transformation, some special neutral differential equations can be equivalently transformed into the nonlinear descriptor systems. Finally, the correctness and the effectiveness of the theoretical analysis are justified by numerical examples.