Bird Sightings : Goldeneye

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Hebrides Bird Sightings : Goldeneye

Adult male

Goldeneye

(Common Goldeneye, American Goldeneye, European Goldeneye, Goldeneyed Duck, Brass-Eyed Whistler, Brasseye, Bull-Head, Cobhead, Common Goldeneye Whistler, Copperhead, Cub-Head, Garrot, Great-Head, Iron-Head, Jingler, Merry-Wing, Sizzle-Britches, Spirit Duck, Whiffler, Whistle-Duck, Whistle-Wing, Whistler)

Bucephala clangula

Gaelic: Lach a'chinn uaine

Photography © Suzanne Harris
Loch Tiumpan - Isle of Lewis - Outer Hebrides (Western Isles)
19th December, 2007

"A drake bird. Tufted duck, Wigeon and Teal were also present"

Goldeneye (Common Goldeneye, American Goldeneye, European Goldeneye, Goldeneyed Duck, Brass-Eyed Whistler, Brasseye, Bull-Head, Cobhead, Common Goldeneye Whistler, Copperhead, Cub-Head, Garrot, Great-Head, Iron-Head, Jingler, Merry-Wing, Sizzle-Britches, Spirit Duck, Whiffler, Whistle-Duck, Whistle-Wing, Whistler))

Bucephala clangula

Gaelic: Lach a'chinn uaine

UK: Resident Breeder, Passage/Winter Visitor

UK: AMBER LIST. 200 pairs (summer), (32,000 winter) RSPB

WI: Uncommon Winter Visitor (recorded in low numbers each year)

Breeds: Europe (inc Scotland), Asia, North America, Canada, Northern Russia

Winters: Aug - March birds from North Europe visit UK. Mediterranean, South China, USA

Habitat: Lakes, rivers, forests (migration protected seacoasts & open inland water)

Diet: Diving to 4m underwater to forage: crustaceans, molluscs, fish eggs, plants (summer insects)

Med size sea duck (16-21in). Male dark back. White neck & belly. Head dark & greenish. Circular white patch below yellow eye. Female smaller with mottled grey body & chocolate brown head. Flight shows large white area on inner wing

Average age 7yrs, Max recorded 11yrs

Listen to a Goldeneye (RSPB site)

Similar birds: Smew (rare here), Goosesander (fairly rare), Bufflehead (very rare)

Goldeneye nest in large holes in trees. The first UK breeding record was in Scotland in 1970. Since then nestboxes have been put in trees by water and this has successfully encouraged some of the winter visitors to stay.

In North America approximately 4% of the local goldeneye population is killed annually by duckhunters.

Goldeneye records in the Western Isles

Uncommon Winter Visitor (recorded in low numbers each year).
(Source: Outer Hebrides Bird Report)

On the chart below the darker the shade of blue the more abundant the bird is during a month or the more likely you are to see it.

J

F

M

A

M

J

J

A

S

O

N

D

(Source: Outer Hebrides Birds Checklist)

Goldeneye prefer moorland lochs, usually inland ones

Male or female ducks and their collective nouns

Some people use the word duck only for an adult female and drake for an adult male whilst others say hen and drake.

Waterfowl collective nouns (From WIKI):

waterfowl (on water) A raft

waterfowl A bunch of waterfowl

waterfowl (less than 30) A knob

ducks, swimming A paddling of ducks

waterfowl A plump

ducks, idle in water A raft of ducks

ducks, diving A dopping of ducks

ducks, on ground A badelynge of ducks

ducks, flying A flight, plump, or team of ducks

ducks A brace, bunch, , flock, skein, sord, string, brace, flush

Other local bird photographs

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