photo by Neill Smith.
Appearance:
Male - The male Velvet Scoter has an all black plumage except for white around the eye and a white speculum, whitish eyes, the beak is orange-yellow with a red tip and the base of the beak has a swollen black knob. Legs and feet are reddish-brown with darker webbed feet.
Female - The female has a dark-brown plumage with two pale patches on each side of the head, brown eyes, lacks the knob on the beak, and white wing patches.
Size: - Typical Adult is 51-57cm (20-22in).
Food: - Mainly dives for molluscs and crustaceans, also mussels, fish spawn, and insect larvae.
Habitat/Range: - Rivers, wooded tundra, coast, and large inland lakes in northern Europe, and Asia (Western Siberia). A small isolated population also breeds in eastern Turkey. It winters in the coastal waters of the UK, Europe, Black Sea, and the Caspian Sea.
Breeding Habitat/Resident, 
Migration or Winter Area.Breeding Season: - From mid-May.
Eggs: - 8 to 9 (creamy-white or ivory colour).
Notes: - The Velvet Scoter is a large sea duck which is also sometimes called the Velvet Duck or Whitewing.
Conservation status (IUCN 3.1):
Endangered.
Classification: - Family: Anatidae,
Subfamily: Merginae, Genus: Melanitta.
