Common Scoter
Encyclopedia
The Common Scoter is a large sea duck
, 43-54 cm in length, which breeds over the far north of Europe
and Asia
east to the Olenyok River
. The American/E Siberian M. americana (Black Scoter
) is sometimes considered a subspecies
of M. nigra.
It winters
further south in temperate
zones, on the coasts of Europe
as far south as Morocco
. It forms large flocks on suitable coastal waters. These are tightly packed, and the birds tend to take off and dive together.
The lined nest is built on the ground close to the sea, lakes or rivers, in woodland or tundra
. 6-8 egg
s are laid.
It is characterised by its bulky shape and large bill. The male is all black with a bulbous bill which shows some yellow coloration around the nostril
s. The female is a brown bird
with pale cheeks, very similar to female Black Scoter.
This species can be distinguished from other scoters, apart from Black, by the lack of white anywhere on the drake, and the more extensive pale areas on the female.
This species dives for crustacean
s and molluscs; it also eats aquatic insect
s and small fish
when on fresh water.
The Common Scoter is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA
) applies.
area, and the UK population at about 20,000. There is a marked passage in spring through the Straits of Dover.
In 2003 a previously unknown wintering population of 50,000+ was found on Shell Flat
in the north west of England
by Cirrus Energy whilst surveying the area for a new wind farm
http://www.rspb.org.uk/england/northwest/conservation/sites/shellflat.asp. Due to this development and an oil spill off the coast of Wales, in 1996, questions about the Common Scoter population have been asked in the UK Parliament http://www.publications.parliament.uk/cgi-bin/newhtml_hl?DB=semukparl&STEMMER=en&WORDS=common%20scoter&ALL=&ANY=&PHRASE=%22common%20scoter%20%22&CATEGORIES=&SIMPLE=&SPEAKER=&COLOUR=red&STYLE=s&ANCHOR=11026-12_spnew3&URL=/pa/cm200102/cmhansrd/vo011026/debtext/11026-12.htm#11026-12_spnew3.
Although the Common Scoter is a winter visitor to the UK, there are some breeding pairs in the north of Scotland
. The species has been placed on the RSPB conservation Red List because of a greater than fifty percent decline in this UK breeding population. In 1998 the UK Government agreed to a biodiversity action plan (BAP) for the Common Scoter to increase the breeding population to 100 pairs by 2008 http://www.rspb.org.uk/biodiversity/RSPBandbiodiversity/lead_partner/birds/scoter/index.asp. The Irish population, which had reached a peak of 150-200 pairs in the 1970s, crashed disastrously in the 1990s,and by 2010 there were no confirmed reports of breeding.
At the third steering group meeting of the UK Common Scoter Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) the population in the Shell Flat area was put at 16,500 wintering Scoter and 5,000 moulting birds, of which 4,000 used the footprint area of the proposed wind farm http://www.wwt.org.uk/threatsp/scoter/downloads/CS%20BAP%20SG3%20Minutes.doc.
Merginae
The seaducks, Merginae, form a subfamily of the duck, goose and swan family of birds, Anatidae.As the name implies, most but not all, are essentially marine outside the breeding season. Many species have developed specialized salt glands to allow them to tolerate salt water, but these have not yet...
, 43-54 cm in length, which breeds over the far north of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
east to the Olenyok River
Olenyok River
The Olenyok River is a major river in northern Siberian Russia, west of the lower Lena River and east of the Anabar River. It is long, of which around is navigable. Average water discharge is 1210 m³/s...
. The American/E Siberian M. americana (Black Scoter
Black Scoter
The Black or American Scoter is a large sea duck, 43 to 49 centimeters in length. Together with the Common Scoter M. nigra, it forms the subgenus Oidemia; the two are sometimes considered conspecific, the Black Scoter then being referred to as M. nigra americana...
) is sometimes considered a subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of M. nigra.
It winters
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
further south in temperate
Temperate
In geography, temperate or tepid latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally relatively moderate, rather than extreme hot or cold...
zones, on the coasts of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
as far south as Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
. It forms large flocks on suitable coastal waters. These are tightly packed, and the birds tend to take off and dive together.
The lined nest is built on the ground close to the sea, lakes or rivers, in woodland or tundra
Tundra
In physical geography, tundra is a biome where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. The term tundra comes through Russian тундра from the Kildin Sami word tūndâr "uplands," "treeless mountain tract." There are three types of tundra: Arctic tundra, alpine...
. 6-8 egg
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
s are laid.
It is characterised by its bulky shape and large bill. The male is all black with a bulbous bill which shows some yellow coloration around the nostril
Nostril
A nostril is one of the two channels of the nose, from the point where they bifurcate to the external opening. In birds and mammals, they contain branched bones or cartilages called turbinates, whose function is to warm air on inhalation and remove moisture on exhalation...
s. The female is a brown bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
with pale cheeks, very similar to female Black Scoter.
This species can be distinguished from other scoters, apart from Black, by the lack of white anywhere on the drake, and the more extensive pale areas on the female.
This species dives for crustacean
Crustacean
Crustaceans form a very large group of arthropods, usually treated as a subphylum, which includes such familiar animals as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill and barnacles. The 50,000 described species range in size from Stygotantulus stocki at , to the Japanese spider crab with a leg span...
s and molluscs; it also eats aquatic insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s and small fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
when on fresh water.
The Common Scoter is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA
AEWA
The Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds is the largest of its kind developed so far under the Bonn Convention. It was concluded on 16 June 1995 at The Hague, the Netherlands and entered into force on 1 November 1999 after the required number of at least fourteen...
) applies.
Vocalisations
Black Scoter and Common Scoter have diagnosably distinct vocalisations (Sangster 2009).UK population and current issues
Campbell (1977) estimated the wintering population in north-western Europe to be about 130,000, mostly in the BalticBaltic region
The terms Baltic region, Baltic Rim countries, and Baltic Rim refer to slightly different combinations of countries in the general area surrounding the Baltic Sea.- Etymology :...
area, and the UK population at about 20,000. There is a marked passage in spring through the Straits of Dover.
In 2003 a previously unknown wintering population of 50,000+ was found on Shell Flat
Shell Flat
The Shell Flat Sandbank was the site of a proposed Cirrus Shell Flat Array offshore wind farm in Lancashire, England. It is located about off the coast between Blackpool and Cleveleys. The wind farm project was canceled in 2008.-History:...
in the north west of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
by Cirrus Energy whilst surveying the area for a new wind farm
Wind farm
A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electric power. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines, and cover an extended area of hundreds of square miles, but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other...
http://www.rspb.org.uk/england/northwest/conservation/sites/shellflat.asp. Due to this development and an oil spill off the coast of Wales, in 1996, questions about the Common Scoter population have been asked in the UK Parliament http://www.publications.parliament.uk/cgi-bin/newhtml_hl?DB=semukparl&STEMMER=en&WORDS=common%20scoter&ALL=&ANY=&PHRASE=%22common%20scoter%20%22&CATEGORIES=&SIMPLE=&SPEAKER=&COLOUR=red&STYLE=s&ANCHOR=11026-12_spnew3&URL=/pa/cm200102/cmhansrd/vo011026/debtext/11026-12.htm#11026-12_spnew3.
Although the Common Scoter is a winter visitor to the UK, there are some breeding pairs in the north of Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. The species has been placed on the RSPB conservation Red List because of a greater than fifty percent decline in this UK breeding population. In 1998 the UK Government agreed to a biodiversity action plan (BAP) for the Common Scoter to increase the breeding population to 100 pairs by 2008 http://www.rspb.org.uk/biodiversity/RSPBandbiodiversity/lead_partner/birds/scoter/index.asp. The Irish population, which had reached a peak of 150-200 pairs in the 1970s, crashed disastrously in the 1990s,and by 2010 there were no confirmed reports of breeding.
At the third steering group meeting of the UK Common Scoter Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) the population in the Shell Flat area was put at 16,500 wintering Scoter and 5,000 moulting birds, of which 4,000 used the footprint area of the proposed wind farm http://www.wwt.org.uk/threatsp/scoter/downloads/CS%20BAP%20SG3%20Minutes.doc.
External links
- Oiseaux Photos, text, map.