Velvet scoter
| Velvet scoter | |
|---|---|
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| Male | |
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| Female | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Anseriformes |
| Family: | Anatidae |
| Subfamily: | Merginae |
| Genus: | Melanitta |
| Subgenus: | (Melanitta) |
| Species: | M. fusca |
| Binomial name | |
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Melanitta fusca (Linnaeus, 1758) |
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The velvet scoter (Melanitta fusca), also called a velvet duck, is a large sea duck, which breeds over the far north of Europe and Asia west of the Yenisey basin.The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek melas "black" and netta "duck". The species name is from the Latin fuscus "dusky brown".
A small, isolated population nests in eastern Turkey. The East Siberian and North American white-winged scoter is sometimes considered conspecific with the velvet scoter, and its two constituent subspecies are then known as M. f. stejnegeri and M. f. deglandi. Velvet and white-winged scoter, along with the surf scoter, are placed in the subgenus Melanitta, distinct from the subgenus Oidemia, black scoter and common scoters.
It winters farther south in temperate zones, Europe as far south as Great Britain, and on the Black and Caspian Sea. Small numbers reach France and northern Spain. It forms large flocks on suitable coastal waters. These are tightly packed, and the birds tend to take off together. The species is listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN.
The lined nest is built on the ground close to the sea, lakes or rivers, in woodland or tundra, and typically contains 7–9 eggs. This duck dives for crustaceans and molluscs.
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Wikipedia