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Barrow's Goldeneye

Barrow's Goldeneye

Bucephala islandica

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Barrow's Goldeneye is a medium-sized diving duck, closely related to the Common Goldeneye. Most of the population breeds in north-western North America, in the Rocky Mountains and Alaska, with smaller populations in eastern Canada, Greenland and Iceland. It nests in tree cavities in North America and in crevices elsewhere, and winters on sheltered coasts and ice-free lakes.

Did you know?

  • The species is named after Sir John Barrow, a statesman who promoted Arctic exploration.
  • In North America it nests mainly in tree cavities, but where trees are absent it uses rock crevices.

About the species

Identification

The male is black and white with a glossy purplish-black head and a narrow white crescent in front of the eye; the back shows a row of white spots against black. The female has a chocolate-brown head, grey body, pale neck collar and a short bill that is often largely orange-yellow. Compared with Common Goldeneye, the male's face patch is a crescent, not round, and the head is steeper and more peaked; females have shorter, more triangular bills with more orange.

Family

Anatidae

Size

Large (crow)

Colours

black, white, grey

About the habitat

Clear lakes and rivers, often at altitude in mountain regions, with nest sites in tree cavities or rock crevices; in winter sheltered coastal waters and ice-free lakes.

Diet

Dives for aquatic insects and their larvae, molluscs and crustaceans; also small fish and some plant matter.

Behaviour

A strong, fast flier whose wings whistle in flight. Forages by diving in clear lakes, rivers and coastal waters, often in small groups. Courtship includes dramatic head-throw displays. Territorial pairs defend their feeding areas, and the ducklings leave the nest soon after hatching.

Sources

Photo: Unknown, Public domain https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Barrows.goldeneye.male.010107.arp.jpg

Text: GBIF regional observations + Wikipedia (Icelandic), GBIF occurrence data; Wikipedia: CC BY-SA 4.0 https://is.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%C3%BAs%C3%B6nd

See also