Common Eider
Somateria mollissima
En edderfugl er en andefugl, der især findes i det nordligste Nordamerika, Europa og Asien. Den er i Danmark både almindelig som ynglefugl og trækgæst fra det øvrige Nordvesteuropa.
Our largest duck, 60–70 cm and heavily built, with a long wedge-shaped bill running in one line with the forehead — head shape is the surest mark. The drake is black and white with a green wash on the nape, the female warm brown with fine black barring.
Plumage and variation
Male and female: Drake black and white with a green nape and a pinkish flush on the breast; female uniformly warm brown to grey-brown with fine black vermiculation. The female is told from other ducks by size and head shape.
Voice
The drake gives a strange, almost human-like "ah-ooo" in display; the female answers with hoarse quacks.
Behaviour
Dives for mussels, snails and crustaceans — especially blue mussels, swallowed whole and crushed in the gizzard; an eider can eat its own body weight in a day. Breeds colonially and is often strikingly approachable.
When and where
About 25,000 pairs breed in Denmark, on islands and islets in the inner waters and the Wadden Sea.
Facts
Wingspan
98 cm
Conservation status
næsten truet
Relatives
Family
ducks, geese and swans
Anatidae
Order
waterfowl
Anseriformes
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