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Eider

Somateria mollissima

Not yet photographed by the community

Large sea duck; male has white back and black belly.

Species Profile

Amber List (breeding population declining in UK)

Lifespan: 15–20 years in the wild
Size & Weight: 50–71 cm, wingspan 80–108 cm; 1.0–2.3 kg
Habitat: Shallow coastal waters, estuaries, and rocky shores, with a preference for areas with kelp beds and mussel populations.
UK Distribution: Resident and migratory; breeds in Scotland and northeastern England, particularly the Farne Islands and Shetland. Winter populations are boosted by visitors from Scandinavia and Russia.
Diet: Benthic invertebrates, primarily mussels and other bivalves, along with crustaceans, sea urchins, and occasionally small fish.
Prey: Mussels (Mytilus edulis), cockles, clams, crustaceans, echinoderms
Predators: Great black-backed gulls, white-tailed eagles, mink, and occasionally grey seals; eggs and ducklings vulnerable to herring gulls and corvids
Mating Season: December to June, with peak activity February to April
Breeding: Clutch size 3–5 eggs; incubation period 26–30 days by female alone; single brood per year; ducklings fledge at 8–9 weeks
Behaviour: Highly gregarious outside breeding season, forming large rafts at sea. Males are highly vocal with distinctive cooing calls. Females are excellent divers and can reach depths of 30+ metres to forage.

Did You Know?

•Eider down—the insulating plumage females pluck from their breasts to line nests—has been harvested commercially for centuries and is still the finest natural insulator known
•Males are strikingly dimorphic: breeding plumage features black and white coloration, whilst females are cryptically brown to camouflage during incubation
•Eiders can dive to depths exceeding 30 metres and may remain submerged for up to one minute whilst foraging
•Unlike most ducks, eider ducklings form creches (large groups) supervised by multiple females, improving survival rates
•The species is circumpolar, found across the northern hemisphere; the UK population is part of the northwestern European population

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