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Greater Scaup
Aythya marila
Identify the Greater Scaup by sound or photo and log your sightings with Birdpass.
The Greater Scaup is a robust, circumpolar diving duck that breeds on tundra and northern lakes and winters mainly on temperate sea coasts. Males show a glossy greenish-black head, grey back and white flanks; females are brown with a white patch around the bill base. It often gathers in large rafts offshore outside the breeding season. Populations have declined since the 1980s, but the species remains of Least Concern.
Did you know?
- In winter it can gather in rafts of thousands of birds.
- Its name probably comes from “scalp”, an old word for a shellfish bed.
About the species
Identification
The male has a dark head with a greenish gloss, dark breast, white belly and finely vermiculated grey back; the bluish bill and yellow eye stand out. The female resembles a female Tufted Duck but usually has more white at the bill base, a paler cheek pattern and a frostier grey back. Greater Scaup lacks the Tufted Duck's crest, and the male's back is clearly paler than a male Tufted Duck's.
Family
Anatidae
Size
Large (crow)
Colours
black, white, grey, blue
About the habitat
Breeds on tundra pools, boreal lakes and coastal archipelagos; winters on sheltered bays, estuaries and shallow coastal seas with mussel beds, and sometimes on large inland lakes.
Diet
Mainly molluscs such as mussels and clams, plus snails, crustaceans and aquatic insects taken by diving; also some seeds and plant material, especially in fresh water.
Behaviour
A gregarious diving duck that forages in flocks, often diving in synchrony. Courtship with head-throw displays takes place on spring migration, and pairs are monogamous for the season. The female nests near water, often on islands or floating vegetation, and the ducklings follow her soon after hatching.
Sources
Photo: Chuck Homler d/b/a Focus On Wildlife, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Drake Greater scaup (Aythya marila) Barnegat Inlet, New Jersey, USA.jpg
Text: Wikipedia (English) + FinBIF species descriptions, CC BY-SA 4.0; FinBIF: CC BY 4.0 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_scaup
 Barnegat Inlet, New Jersey, USA.jpg){kind=link}