Melanitta perspicillata
Length: 18-23 Weight: 2-4 lbs
Identification:
Male has white patches on the forehead and back of neck, with an enlarged bill colored white, orange, and yellow. Female is dark brown with a vertical white patch behind the bill.
Distribution:
Breed in Alaska and northern Canada. Winter along the Pacific and Atlantic Coasts, and sometimes the Great Lakes.
Cool Facts:
Surf Scoters spend their winter months on the ocean, but breed on freshwater lakes.
The genus name for scoters, Melanitta, means “black duck” in Latin. The Surf Scoter bears the species name perspicillata, meaning “spectacled.”
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References:
Bird on the Move 