Melanitta fusca
As White-winged Scoters race across mountain lakes during migration, their flapping wings reveal their key identifying feature: the white inner-wing patches strike a sharp contrast with the bird's otherwise black plumage. Scoters are heavy-bodied ducks, and they require long stretches of open water for takeoff. The name 'scoter' is derived from the way these birds scoot across the water's surface, frequently touching cresting waves. Occasionally, scooting is just a way of traveling quickly from one foraging site to another. White-winged Scoters are the most southerly nesters of the three North American scoters, breeding on occasion in the northwestern U.S. Black Scoters are the least common of the three scoters in North America. These all-black birds migrate through the Rockies in very small numbers. Large flocks of White-winged Scoters should be thoroughly checked for these rarely seen birds. |
I.D.: General: largest scoter; stocky, all-dark duck; large, bulbous bill; sloping forehead; base of the bill is fully feathered. Male: black overall; white patch below the eye. Female: brown overall; gray-brown bill; light patches on the sides of the head. In flight: white wing patches. Size: L 19-24 in. (48-61 cm). Range: common spring and uncommon fall migrant in the northern Rockies; rare migrant in the southern Rockies; non-breeding birds occasionally summer in the Canadian Rockies. Habitat: large, deep-water lakes and slow-moving streams. Nesting: typically in Canada and Alaska; among willows or bushes very near shorelines; in a shallow scrape lined with sticks, leaves, grass and down; female incubates 9 eggs for 30 days. Feeding: deep, underwater dives lasting up to 1 minute; mainly eats crustaceans; frequently takes aquatic insects, such as stonefly and caddisfly larvae, and snails; mainly eats shellfish when wintering on the coast. Voice: courting pair produces guttural and harsh noises, between a crook and a quack. Similar Species: Surf Scoter: no white wing patches; male has a white forehead and nape. |