Family Ducks, Geese, Swans (Anatidae)
Least Concern
Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata)
Taxonomy
French: Macreuse à front blanc German: Brillenente Spanish: Negrón careto
Taxonomy:
Anas perspicillata
Linnaeus
, 1758,Canada = Hudson Bay ex Edwards
.Distribution:
Breeds in North America from W Alaska E through C Canada to Labrador. Winters from Aleutian Is S to Baja California and C Sonora (Mexico) on Pacific coast, and along Atlantic coast as far as S Florida and Gulf Coast.
Descriptive notes
43–55 cm; c. 870–1000 g; wingspan 78–92 cm. Medium-sized seaduck that is distinguished from both M. nigra and M. fusca by smaller size,... read more
Voice
Breeding male can utter low whistled notes or sharp “puk-puk”, while female gives guttural “krrrak... read more
Habitat
Breeds on small (typically < 20 ha), shallow bodies of fresh water in boreal (spruce) forests or... read more
Food and feeding
Chiefly molluscs; also crustaceans, worms, echinoderms and, mainly in summer, insects and their larvae and plant material, such as seeds... read more
Breeding
Starts May/Jun, with pairs generally arriving on breeding grounds immediately following snow melt in second half of May and first clutches... read more
Movements
Migratory, with adult males leaving breeding grounds as early as mid Jun, failed females in third... read more
Status and conservation
Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Fairly common, although perhaps currently involved in decline evident on both coasts of continent, e.g. numbers in Prince William... read more
Monotypic.