Table of Contents
What is a male king eider?
Male (with Common Eider) Large sea duck with an oblong head and a smaller bill. Males have an ornately colored blue, green, and orange head and a black-and-white body. Often gathers with other sea ducks.
How long does a king eider live?
about 15 to 20 years
How long do King Eiders live? King Eiders live about 15 to 20 years in the wild.
What does a king eider look like?
Basic Description. Among the waterfowl of the world, none is more ornately adorned than the male King Eider, its black-and-white plumage accented by a red-and-orange bill, pearl-blue crown, and spring-green cheek. Females are a rich marbling of rusty brown and black.
How many species of eider are there?
four species
Eiders are sea ducks found in the circumpolar arctic and subarctic. There are four species of Eiders found on the North Slope: common eiders, king eiders, spectacled eiders, and Steller’s eiders. Common and King eiders are similar in size. Spectacled eiders are slightly smaller and Steller’s eiders are the smallest.
How big is a king eider?
3.6 lbsKing eider / Mass (Adult)
Are King Eiders rare?
This large seaduck resides all around the northern hemisphere, breeding on tundra near coasts north of the Arctic Circle and wintering far enough south to escape winter ice, often at sea. It is a rare winter visitor along the West Coast outside Alaska.
Do eider ducks change colour?
While the body remains the same blackish brown as the juvenile (with different levels of white speckled through, depending on the stage of moulting the individual is in) the breast is bright white in colour.
Where do eider ducks go in winter?
The sedentary Hudson Bay Eider winters in polynyas (areas of open sea within the sea ice) and in cracks and leads in the ice.
Where are king eider found?
arctic tundra
Habitat. King Eiders nest in arctic tundra, both wet and dry, usually not far from water, whether interior lakes or the ocean coast. Common plants in such habitats include purple saxifrage, crowberry, bearberry, Labrador tea, dwarf birch, arctic willow, pendant grass, and various sedges.
What is a group of eider called?
These birds were the subject of one of the first ever bird protection laws, established by Saint Cuthbert in the year 676. About 1,000 pairs still nest there every year. A group of ducks has many collective nouns, including a “brace”, “flush”, “paddling”, “raft”, and “team” of ducks.
Do eider ducks change Colour?
What do King Eider ducks eat?
They eat a variety of shellfish, crustaceans, echinoderms (sea urchins, starfish), and algae (seaweed), which they capture with the bill and often consume when still underwater. When nesting on land, King Eiders eat mostly insects and plant matter.
Where can you find King Eider ducks?
the Arctic
Habitat and range The king eider is circumpolar, found throughout the Arctic. It breeds on the Arctic coast of Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Svalbard and Russia, using a variety of tundra habitats.
How big is a King Eider?
Are eider ducks rare?
Conservation status Listed as Near Threatened on the global IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Can eider ducks fly?
Key information. The eider is the UK’s heaviest duck and its fastest flying.
Where can I hunt king eider?
Pribilof Islands
Alaska’s Pribilof Islands in the famous Bering Sea is the most practical place on earth for king eider hunting. For the dedicated waterfowler looking for the ultimate guided duck hunt in Alaska for trophy King Eiders, Harlequin, Long Tail Ducks (Old Squaw) and Scoters, there’s no better option.
Do eider ducks eat fish?
What they eat: Shellfish, especially mussels.
Do king eiders mate with common eiders?
Male King Eiders have been observed several times displaying to, and mating with, female Common Eiders. The opposite pairing — male Common with female King — seems to be far less likely. King Eider, first-winter male. March in Ocean County, New Jersey. Photo by Brian E. Small
King Eider Identification. Male. Large sea duck with an oblong head and a smaller bill. Males have an ornately colored blue, green, and orange head and a black-and-white body. Note orange bill.
Why is it called a king eider?
The bird’s common name, king eider, is a direct translation of its Icelandic name. It is called “king” because of the orange, crown-like knob above the male’s bill; the male’s multicoloured plumage also suggests royal robes.
What kind of eiders are in the winter?
Winter flocks of Common Eiders are usually a mix of brown females, crisp black and white adult males, and patchy young males. The young males are most readily separated from young male Kings by head and bill structure.