White-winged Scoter

Melanitta fusca

Order Anseriformes - Family Anatidae - Subfamily Anatinae

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1. Cool Facts
2. Description
3. Similar Species
4. Sound
5. Range
6. Habitat
7. Food
8. Behavior
9. Reproduction
10. Conservation Status
11. Other Names

A large black duck of coastal waters, the White-winged Scoter breeds farther inland than the other two scoter species and is the one most likely to appear inland on lakes and rivers during migration.

Cool Facts

• Although the White-winged Scoter winters primarily along the coasts, small numbers winter on the eastern Great Lakes. Populations on the Great Lakes may have declined during the 1970s, but appear to be increasing in response to the invasion of the zebra mussel, a new and abundant food source.
• The White-winged Scoter often nests in association with gull breeding colonies. Although the gulls would happily eat the eggs and chicks of the scoter, the dense vegetation where the scoter nests keeps them safe.

• The White-winged Scoters found in North America and eastern Asia differ from those found in Europe in the structure of the bill and trachea of the male. The European "Velvet Scoter" male has only a slight swelling on the top of the bill, and the bill is yellow, not orange. The two forms sometimes are regarded as distinct species.

Description

• Size: 48-58 cm (19-23 in)
• Wingspan: 80 cm (31 in)
• Weight: 950-1800 g (33.54-63.54 ounces)

• Large, stocky diving duck.
• Black.
• White patch in wings.
• Male with white comma-shaped patch around eyes.
• Female with whitish patches on face.

Sex Differences

Male solid black with white mark around eyes, female more brownish with two variable whitish patches on face.

Male

Entirely black, without gloss. Inverted comma-shaped white patch surrounding eyes. Pale edges to body feathers may produce scalloping or barring on back and sides. Belly sometimes white. Bill black at base, including the hump, with reddish sides, and orange nail. Eyes white. Legs red, with black webs and joints.

Female

Dark brownish. Head may be all dark, or have poorly defined light patches at base of bill and on cheek. Bill dark grayish black with reddish wash and light band next to nail. Eyes dark brown. Legs and feet reddish with black webs.

Immature

Similar to adult female but with paler belly and more distinct face patches.

Similar Species

• Female Surf Scoter with similar whitish face patches, but has a more capped look with more white on the cheeks, lacks large white patch in wings, and has a more stepped forehead.
• Black Scoter male is all black with an orange bill and a round head. Female has a dark cap and clean whitish cheeks, not patches, a rounded head, and lacks white wing patches.

Sound

Usually silent. Wings make quiet whistling noise in flight. Male has bell-like note in courtship. Female makes thin whistling note.

»listen to songs of this species

Range

Summer Range

Breeds from Alaska to western Ontario. Also across northern Eurasia.

Winter Range

Winters along Pacific and Atlantic coasts from Alaska and Newfoundland southward to Mexico and Georgia. Some in eastern Great Lakes. Also southward along coasts to China and Spain.

Habitat

Breeds on large freshwater or brackish lakes and ponds. Winters in coastal estuaries, bays, and open coastline with shallow water over shellfish beds.

Food

Mollusks (especially clams and mussels), crustaceans, and insects; occasionally aquatic plants and fish.

Behavior

Foraging

Dives for prey on or near bottom.

Reproduction

Nest Type

Hollow in ground in dense cover away from water, lined with down and twigs.

Egg Description

Creamy buff or light pink.

Clutch Size

6-16 eggs.

Condition at Hatching

Downy and eyes open. Leave nest soon after they dry. Feed themselves immediately.

Conservation Status

Common. Populations may be declining.

Other Names

Macreuse à ailes blanches (French)
Negretta aliblanca (Spanish)
Velvet Scoter (British) (English)

Sources used to construct this page:

Brown, P. W., and L. H. Fredrickson. 1997. White-winged Scoter (Melanitta fusca). In The Birds of North America, No. 274 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C.