Common merganser

In today's world, Common merganser has become a very important issue in society. From its impact on the global economy to its influence on people's daily lives, Common merganser has generated great interest and debate in various areas. As time progresses, interest in Common merganser has been increasing, as its relevance becomes increasingly evident. With so many different opinions and interpretations, it is essential to thoroughly examine Common merganser to understand its scope and impact on different aspects of modern life. In this article, we will explore in detail the various aspects of Common merganser and its impact on today's society.

Common merganser
Temporal range:
M. m. merganser, male in Sandwell, England
M. m. americanus, female
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Anseriformes
Family: Anatidae
Genus: Mergus
Species:
M. merganser
Binomial name
Mergus merganser
Subspecies

3, see text

M. merganser range
  Breeding
  Resident
  Passage
  Non-breeding
Synonyms

Merganser americanus Cassin, 1852

The common merganser (North American) or goosander (Eurasian) (Mergus merganser) is a large sea duck of rivers and lakes in forested areas of Europe, Asia, and North America. The common merganser eats mainly fish. It nests in holes in trees.

Taxonomy

The first formal description of the common merganser was written by Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the 10th edition of his Systema Naturae. He introduced the current binomial name Mergus merganser.[2] The genus name is a Latin word used by Pliny and other Roman authors to refer to an unspecified waterbird, and merganser is derived from mergus and anser, Latin for "goose".[3] In 1843 John James Audubon used the name "Buff-breasted Merganser" in addition to "goosander" in his book The Birds of America.[4]

The three subspecies differ in only minor detail:[5][6]

Image Subspecies Description Distribution
M. m. merganser – Linnaeus, 1758 Throughout northern Europe and northern Asiatic Russia.
M. m. orientalis – Gould, 1845 (syn. M. m. comatus – Salvadori, 1895) Slightly larger than M. m. merganser, it has a more slender bill. Central Asian mountains.
M. m. americanus – Cassin, 1852 Its bill is broader-based than in M. m. merganser, and a black bar crosses the white inner wing (visible in flight) on males. found in North America.

Description

It is 58–72 cm (23–28+1⁄2 in) long with a 78–97 cm (30+1⁄2–38 in) wingspan and a weight of 0.9–2.1 kg (2 lb 0 oz – 4 lb 10 oz); males are on average slightly larger than females, but with some overlap. Like other species in the genus Mergus, it has a crest of longer head feathers, but these usually lie smoothly rounded behind the head and do not normally form an erect crest. Adult males in breeding plumage are easily distinguished, the body white with a variable salmon-pink tinge, the head black with an iridescent green sheen, the rump and tail grey, and the wings largely white on the inner half, black on the outer half. Females and males in "eclipse" (non-breeding plumage, July to October) are largely grey, with a reddish-brown head, white chin, and white secondary feathers on the wing. Juveniles (both sexes) are similar to adult females but also show a short black-edged white stripe between the eye and bill. The bill and legs are red to brownish-red, brightest on adult males, dullest on juveniles.[5][6][7]

Behaviour

Feeding

As with other Mergansers, these piscivorous ducks have serrated edges to their bills to help them grip their prey, so they are often known as "sawbills". In addition to fish, they take a wide range of other aquatic prey, such as molluscs, crustaceans, worms, insect larvae, and amphibians; more rarely, small mammals and birds may be taken.[5][6] As in other birds with this trait, the salmon-pink colouration shown variably by males is probably dietary-derived from the carotenoid pigments found in some crustaceans and fish.[8] When not diving for food, they are usually observed swimming on the surface of the water or resting on rocks in the middle of rivers or hidden in the vegetation along riverbanks, or (in winter) on the edge of floating ice.[5][6]

Habits

In most places, the common merganser is equally at home in salt and fresh water. In larger streams and rivers, they float down with the current for a few miles and either fly back or, more commonly, fish their way back, diving all the way. In smaller streams, they are present in pairs or smaller groups, and they float down, twisting round and round in the rapids, or fishing vigorously in a deep pool at the foot of a waterfall or rapid. When swimming leisurely, they position themselves in the water much like dabbling ducks, but they also swim deep in the water like cormorants, especially when swimming upstream. They often sit on a rock in the middle of the water, similar to cormorants, often with their wings half-open to the sun. To rise from the water, they flap along the surface for many yards. Once they are airborne, their flight is strong and fast.[9]

They often fish in a group forming a semicircle and driving the fish into shallow water, where they are easy to catch. Their normal vocalisation is a low, harsh croak, but during the breeding season, males and juveniles produce a plaintive, soft whistle. They are generally wary, and one or more birds will remain on sentry duty to warn the flock of approaching danger. If disturbed, they will often disgorge food before moving.[10] Although they move clumsily on land, they resort to running when pushed to do so, assuming a very upright position similar to penguins, and frequently falling and stumbling.[11]

Breeding

Nesting is usually in a tree cavity, so the species requires mature forest as its breeding habitat; they also readily use large nest boxes where these are available, requiring an entrance hole 15 cm (6 in) in diameter.[12] In treeless areas such as the mountains of Central Asia, they use holes in cliffs and steep, high banks, sometimes a considerable distances from the water.[10] The female lays 6–17 (most often 8–12) white to yellowish eggs, and raises one brood per season. Immediately after hatching, the ducklings are carried by the mother on her back to rivers or lakes immediately after hatching, where they feed on freshwater invertebrates and small fish fry, fledging at 60–70 days of age. The young are sexually mature at two years of age.[5][6][7] Common mergansers are known to form crèches, with single females having been observed with over 70 ducklings at one time. [13]

Movements

The species is a partial migrant, with birds moving away from areas where rivers and large lakes freeze in the winter, but resident where waters remain open. Birds from Eastern North America migrate south in small groups to the United States wherever lakes and rivers are ice-free; on the milder Pacific coast, they are permanent residents. Scandinavian and Russian birds also migrate southwards, but western European birds, and a few in Japan, are largely resident.[5][6] In some populations, the males also show distinct moult migration, leaving the breeding grounds as soon as the young hatch to spend the summer (June to September) elsewhere. In particular, most of the Western European male population migrates north to estuaries in Finnmark in northern Norway (principally Tanafjord) to moult, leaving the females to care for the ducklings. Much smaller numbers of males also use estuaries in eastern Scotland as a moulting area.[7][14][15]

Status and conservation

Overall, the species is not threatened, although illegal persecution by game-fishing interests is a problem in certain regions.[16] In February 2020, a rare common merganser sighting was documented in Central Park, New York; the bird showed clear signs of distress, with its beak caught in a piece of debris.[17]

Within Western Europe, there has been a marked southward expansion of the breeding range from Scandinavia in the breeding range since about 1850, colonising Scotland in 1871, England in 1941, and also a strong increase in the population in the Alps.[7] They are very rare in Ireland, with regular breeding restricted to a few pairs in County Wicklow.[18]

The goosander is one of the species covered by the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds.

Images

References

  1. ^ BirdLife International (2018). "Mergus merganser". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2018: e.T22680492A132054083. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22680492A132054083.en. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  2. ^ Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturæ per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis, Volume 1 (in Latin). Vol. v.1 (10th ed.). Holmiae:Laurentii Salvii. p. 129.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  3. ^ Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp. 250–251. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
  4. ^ Audubon, J.J. (1843). The birds of America. Vol. 6. pp. 387–394.
  5. ^ a b c d e f del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A.; Sargatal, J., eds. (1992). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Vol. 1. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. p. 626. ISBN 978-84-87334-10-8.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Madge, S.; Burn, H. (1987). Wildfowl: An Identification Guide to the Ducks, Geese and Swans of the World. A & C Black. ISBN 978-0-7470-2201-5.
  7. ^ a b c d Snow, D.W.; Perrins, C.M. (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic (Concise ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-854099-1.
  8. ^ Hudon, J.; Brush, A.H. (1990). "Carotenoids produce flush in the Elegant Tern plumage" (PDF). The Condor. 92 (3): 798–801. doi:10.2307/1368708. JSTOR 1368708.
  9. ^ Hume, A.O.; Marshall, C.H.T. (1880). The Game birds of India, Burmah and Ceylon. Vol. 3. Self published.
  10. ^ a b Baker, E.C.S. (1928). Fauna of British India. Birds. Vol. 5 (2nd ed.). London: Taylor and Francis. pp. 470–473.
  11. ^ Baker, E.C. Stuart (1922). The game birds of India, Burma and Ceylon. Vol. 1. London, Bombay Natural History Society. pp. 317–327.
  12. ^ du Feu, C. (2005). Nestboxes (PDF). British Trust for Ornithology Field Guide. Thetford: The British Trust for Ornithology.
  13. ^ Mervosh, Sarah (2018-07-24). "1 Hen, 76 Ducklings: What's the Deal With This Picture?". The New York Times.
  14. ^ Little, B.; Furness, R.W. (1985). "Long distance moult migration by British Goosanders Mergus merganser". Ringing & Migration. 6 (2): 77–82. doi:10.1080/03078698.1985.9673860.
  15. ^ Hatton, P.L.; Marquiss, M. (2004). "The origins of moulting Goosanders on the Eden Estuary". Ringing & Migration. 22 (2): 70–74. doi:10.1080/03078698.2004.9674315.
  16. ^ "Crimes against birds". Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime in Scotland. 2009-12-07.
  17. ^ Kilgannon, Corey (2020-02-24). "Central Park Races to Save a Rare Duck Gagging on a Piece of Plastic". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-02-26.
  18. ^ Report of the Irish Rare Breeding Birds Panel 2013 Irish Birds Vol. 10 p.65
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