Difference between revisions of "White-winged Scoter" - BirdForum Opus

Revision as of 16:19, 2 July 2017

Male Velvet Scoter M. f. fusca
Photo by the late Jim Wood
Musselburgh, Scotland, February 2010.

Melanitta fusca

Includes Velvet Scoter

Identification

Male White-winged Scoter M. f. deglandi
Photo by digitalbirder
White Rock, British Columbia, Canada, February 2005

Length 51-58cm, weight 1200-1800 g
Male

Black overall plumage
White 'tick' just below and behind the eye
Long yellow bill
Thick neck
Pointed tail

Female

Dusky brown upperparts
Scaly-looking brownish-grey underparts
Two pale spots in the head, one on the auriculars, one between eye and bill

Juvenile a paler version of female

Flight

In flight, it shows a white patch on the rear of the wing.

Distribution

Male Siberian Scoter M. f. stejnegeri
Photo by DaninJapan
Misawa port, Aomori-Ken, Japan, March 2006

Breeds in northern areas around the globe, such as Scandinavia (especially Sweden and Norway), northern Asia, and northern North America.

Migrates in winter to areas that have coastal open water, for example in Europe will be found from Norway to Spain and east to the Caspian Sea.

Taxonomy

Subspecies

Three subspecies are currently recognised^[1], split into two species by several authorities^[2]^[3]:

M. f. fusca (Velvet Scoter) is found in Europe and western Asia.
M. f. deglandi (White-winged Scoter) occurs in North America and includes M. f. dixoni which is no longer recognised.
M. f. stejnegeri (Siberian Scoter) is found in Eastern Asia. This form is also sometimes proposed for recognition as a full species^[4].

M. f. deglandi has in the past and is increasingly again recognised as a full species (for example by the British BOURC^[3]), which would keep the name of White-winged Scoter; subspecies M. f. fusca being Velvet Scoter. The subspecies M. f. stejnegeri is a subspecies of M. deglandi if IOC^[2] or BOURC^[3] is followed, but is also considered a full species, M. stejnegeri by BirdLife^[4].

All three subspecies are prone to occasional vagrancy, with a scattering of records of birds in the normal ranges of the other subspecies.

Notes on distinguishing males of the subspecies

Velvet Scoter with wing part-open showing the white secondaries
Photo by Digiscoper321
Western Sweden, April 2015

M. f. fusca: the least knob on the bill, and the least white around and behind the eye; almost no white above the eye. The coloured section of the bill is yellow and relatively long, and the distance from the base of that to the eye is short, producing the impression that the eye is positioned relatively far forward on the head. The crown looks highest above the eye.
M. f. deglandi: clear knob at the base of the bill, with the yellow-orange part relatively short, so that the eye looks set further back on head than M. f. fusca. The white around the eye is shaped as a checkmark, pointed up at the rear end. The coloured part of the bill is orange with the top parts looking yellow. The crown is highest in front of the eye. When seen well, flanks will be brown in contrast to black back and breast.
M. f. stejnegeri: Head shape closer to Common Eider in shape, with a long, sloping forehead. White around eye similar to or longer than M. f. deglandi. It has a clear knob - almost like a small Rhinoceros horn - on the bill, further forward than M. f. deglandi, and the coloured parts are mostly red with yellow "lipstick" below. Flanks are black.

Females are much harder to distinguish, only determinable at the closest range; M. f. fusca has a slightly concave forehead with no basal swelling on the bill, M. f. stejnegeri a slightly swollen bill base, and M. f. deglandi a marginally more swollen bill base.

Habitat

Female Velvet Scoter
Photo by Gwynn
Austria, February 2006

Breeds around fresh water bodies near boreal forests and arctic tundra; sometimes far from the coast.

Outside of the breeding season, they are to be found in coastal waters, often near shellfish beds

Behaviour

M. f. fusca often mixes with with Common Eider, and sometimes with Common Scoter.

Action

Slower and more powerful than Common Scoter.

Diet

Their diet includes shellfish, crabs, sea urchins, fish, insect larvae and plants.

Breeding

Male Velvet Scoter in flight
Photo by the late Jim Wood
East Lothian, Scotland, UK, January 2008

They build a lined nest on the ground near lakes or rivers, in woodland or tundra. The clutch consists of 7-9 eggs.

Vocalisation

<flashmp3>Melanitta fusca (song).mp3</flashmp3>
Listen in an external program

References

Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
Gill, F and D Donsker (Eds). 2015. IOC World Bird Names (version 5.2). Available at http://www.worldbirdnames.org/.
DUDLEY et al. 2006. The British List: A Checklist of Birds of Britain (7th edition). Ibis 148:526–563 with online updates to 2009
Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive: Siberian Scoter (retrieved May 2015)
R Strack 2010. Fløjlsænder. Fugle i Felten 1: 6-7, January 2010 (in Danish) .
Birdweb.org
Collins Bird Guide ISBN 0 00 219728
Collins Field Guide 5th Edition ISBN 0 00 219900 9

List of references

Recommended Citation

BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) White-winged Scoter. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 16 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/White-winged_Scoter

External Links

Search for photos of White-winged Scoter in the gallery

Retrieved from ‘https://www.birdforum.net/wiki/index.php?title=White-winged_Scoter&oldid=224624’

Categories:

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-[[Image:Velvet_Scoter.jpg|thumb|450px|right|Male White-winged Scoter (American)<br />Photo by {{user|digitalbirder|digitalbirder}}<br />Location: White Rock, [[British Columbia]], [[Canada]]]]
+[[Image:Velvet Scoter, Musselburgh.jpg|thumb|450px|right|Male '''Velvet Scoter''' ''M. f. fusca'' <br />Photo by the late '''[http://www.birdforum.net/gallery/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=35827 Jim Wood]'''<br />Musselburgh, Scotland, February 2010. ]]
 ;[[:Category:Melanitta|Melanitta]] fusca
 '''Includes Velvet Scoter'''
 ==Identification==
--58cm.  Black, white 'tear drop' just behind the eye, yellow long bill,  thick neck and  pointed tail. In flight, it shows a white patch on the rear of the wing.
+[[Image:Velvet_Scoter.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Male '''White-winged Scoter''' ''M. f. deglandi'' <br />Photo by {{user|digitalbirder|digitalbirder}}<br />White Rock, [[British Columbia]], [[Canada]], February 2005]]
-====Notes on distinguishing males of the subspecies====
+Length 51-58cm, weight 1200-1800 g<br />
-*''deglandi'': clear knob at the base of the bill, with the yellow-orange part relatively short, so that the eye looks set further back on head than ''fusca''. The white around the eye is shaped as a checkmark, pointed up at the rear end. The colored part of the bill is orange with the top parts looking yellow. The crown is highest in front of the eye. When seen well, flanks will be brown in contrast to black back and breast.
+'''Male'''
-[[Image:Velvet_Scoter_Flight_by_jtwood.jpg|thumb|450px|right|Male White-winged Scoter (European) in flight<br />Photo by {{user|jtwood|jtwood}}<br />Location: East Lothian, [[Scotland]], [[UK]], January 2008]]
+*Black overall plumage
-*''stejnegeri'': Head shape closer to eider in shape, with a long, sloping forehead. White around eye similar to or longer than ''deglandi''. It has a clear knob on the bill, further forward than ''deglandi'', and the colored parts are mostly red with yellow "lipstick" below. Flanks are black.
+*White 'tick' just below and behind the eye
-*''fusca'': the least knob on the bill, and the least white around and behind the eye; almost no white above the eye. The colored section of the bill is yellow and relatively long and the distance from the base of that to the eye is short, producing the impression that the eye is positioned relatively far forward on the head. The crown looks highest above the eye.
+*Long yellow bill
+*Thick neck
+*Pointed tail<br />
+'''Female'''
+*Dusky brown upperparts
+*Scaly-looking brownish-grey underparts
+*Two pale spots in the head, one on the [[Topography#Heads|auriculars]], one between eye and bill<br />
+'''Juvenile''' a paler version of female
+====Flight====
+In flight, it shows a white patch on the rear of the wing.
 ==Distribution==
+[[Image:Scooter bf.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Male '''Siberian Scoter''' ''M. f. stejnegeri''<br />Photo by {{user|DaninJapan|DaninJapan}}<br />Misawa port, Aomori-Ken, [[Japan]], March 2006]]
 Breeds in northern areas around the globe, such as [[Scandinavia]] (especially [[Sweden]] and [[Norway]]), northern [[Asia]], and northern [[North America]].
 Migrates in winter to areas that have coastal open water, for example in [[Europe]] will be found from Norway to [[Spain]] and east to the Caspian Sea.
 ==Taxonomy==
-[[Image:Velvet_Scoter2.jpg|thumb|450px|right|Female "Velvet Scoter", Eurasian ''fusca'' <br />Photo by {{user|Gwynn|Gwynn}}<br />Location: [[Austria]]]]
+====Subspecies====
-Three subspecies are currently recognized:
+Three subspecies are currently recognised<sup>[[#References|[1]]]</sup>, split into two species by several authorities<sup>[[#References|[2]]]</sup><sup>[[#References|[3]]]</sup>:
-*''deglandi'' (White-winged Scoter) occurs in North America and includes ''dixoni'' which is no longer recognized.
+*''M. f. fusca'' ('''Velvet Scoter''') is found in [[Europe]] and western [[Asia]].
-*''stejnegeri'' is found in Estern Asia. This form is also sometimes proposed for recognition as a full species, Asian White-winged or Stejneger's Scoter.
+*''M. f. deglandi'' ('''White-winged Scoter''') occurs in [[North America]] and includes ''M. f. dixoni'' which is no longer recognised.
-*''fusca'' is found in Europe and western Asia, .
+*''M. f. stejnegeri'' ('''Siberian Scoter''') is found in Eastern [[Asia]]. This form is also sometimes proposed for recognition as a full species<sup>[[#References|[4]]]</sup>.
+''M. f. deglandi'' has in the past and is increasingly again recognised as a full species (for example by the British BOURC<sup>[[#References|[3]]]</sup>), which would keep the name of White-winged Scoter; subspecies ''M. f. fusca'' being Velvet Scoter. The subspecies ''M. f. stejnegeri'' is a subspecies of ''M. deglandi'' if IOC<sup>[[#References|[2]]]</sup> or BOURC<sup>[[#References|[3]]]</sup> is followed, but is also considered a full species, ''M. stejnegeri'' by BirdLife<sup>[[#References|[4]]].
+All three subspecies are prone to occasional vagrancy, with a scattering of records of birds in the normal ranges of the other subspecies.
+====Notes on distinguishing males of the subspecies====
+[[Image:Velvet Scoter, western Sweden.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Velvet Scoter with wing part-open showing the white secondaries<br />Photo by {{user|Digiscoper321|Digiscoper321}}<br />Western [[Sweden]], April 2015]]
+*''M. f. fusca'': the least knob on the bill, and the least white around and behind the eye; almost no white above the eye. The coloured section of the bill is yellow and relatively long, and the distance from the base of that to the eye is short, producing the impression that the eye is positioned relatively far forward on the head. The crown looks highest above the eye.
+*''M. f. deglandi'': clear knob at the base of the bill, with the yellow-orange part relatively short, so that the eye looks set further back on head than ''M. f. fusca''. The white around the eye is shaped as a checkmark, pointed up at the rear end. The coloured part of the bill is orange with the top parts looking yellow. The crown is highest in front of the eye. When seen well, flanks will be brown in contrast to black back and breast.
+*''M. f. stejnegeri'': Head shape closer to [[Common Eider]] in shape, with a long, sloping forehead. White around eye similar to or longer than ''M. f. deglandi''. It has a clear knob - almost like a small Rhinoceros horn - on the bill, further forward than ''M. f. deglandi'', and the coloured parts are mostly red with yellow "lipstick" below. Flanks are black.
+Females are much harder to distinguish, only determinable at the closest range; ''M. f. fusca'' has a slightly concave forehead with no basal swelling on the bill, ''M. f. stejnegeri'' a slightly swollen bill base, and ''M. f. deglandi'' a marginally more swollen bill base.
-The subspecies ''deglandi'' has in the past and is increasingly again recognized as a full species (for example by the British BOURC), which would keep the name of White-winged Scoter; subspecies ''fusca'' would then become Velvet Scoter. Subspecies ''stejnegeri'' would be a subspecies of ''M. deglandi'' if BOURC is followed, but has also sometimes been considered a full species. Opus follows the developments in the worldwide checklists.
 ==Habitat==
-Lakes, coastal waters, estuaries.
+[[Image:Velvet_Scoter2.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Female Velvet Scoter <br />Photo by {{user|Gwynn|Gwynn}}<br />[[Austria]], February 2006]]
+Breeds around fresh water bodies near boreal forests and arctic tundra; sometimes far from the coast.
+Outside of the breeding season, they are to be found in coastal waters, often near shellfish beds
 ==Behaviour==
-The diet includes shellfish, crabs, sea urchins, fish, insect larvae and plants.
+''M. f. fusca'' often mixes with with [[Common Eider]], and sometimes with [[Common Scoter]].
+====Action====
-It builds a lined nest on the ground close to the sea, lakes or rivers, in woodland or tundra. 7-9 eggs are laid.
+Slower and more powerful than Common Scoter.
+====Diet====
-==Bird Song==
+Their diet includes shellfish, crabs, sea urchins, fish, insect larvae and plants.
+====Breeding====
+[[Image:Velvet_Scoter_Flight_by_jtwood.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Male Velvet Scoter in flight<br />Photo by the late '''[http://www.birdforum.net/gallery/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=35827 Jim Wood]'''<br />East Lothian, [[Scotland]], [[UK]], January 2008]]
+They build a lined nest on the ground near lakes or rivers, in woodland or tundra. The clutch consists of 7-9 eggs.
+====Vocalisation====
 <flashmp3>Melanitta fusca (song).mp3</flashmp3><br />
 ''[[Media:Melanitta fusca (song).mp3|Listen in an external program]]''
 ==References==
-# Clements, James F. 2007. ''The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World''. 6th ed., with updates to October 2007. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. ISBN 9780801445019
+#{{Ref-Clements6thAug16}}#{{Ref-GillDonsker14V5.2}}#[http://www.bou.org.uk/recbrlst.html DUDLEY et al.] 2006. The British List: A Checklist of Birds of Britain (7th edition). Ibis 148:526–563 with online updates to 2009
-# [http://www.bou.org.uk/recbrlst.html DUDLEY et al.] 2006. The British List: A Checklist of Birds of Britain (7th edition). Ibis 148:526–563 with online updates to 2009
+#Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive: [http://www.hbw.com/species/siberian-scoter-melanitta-stejnegeri Siberian Scoter] (retrieved May 2015)
-# R Strack 2010. Fløjlsænder. Fugle i Felten, #1, January 2010, pg 6-7. (in Danish)
+#R Strack 2010. Fløjlsænder. ''Fugle i Felten'' 1: 6-7, January 2010 (in Danish) .
+#Birdweb.org
+#Collins Bird Guide ISBN 0 00 219728
+#Collins Field Guide 5th Edition ISBN 0 00 219900 9
 {{ref}}
 ==External Links==
 {{GSearch|Melanitta+fusca}}
-[[Category:Birds]] [[Category:Melanitta]]
+[[Category:Birds]] [[Category:Melanitta]][[Category:Bird Songs]]