Eurasian Wigeon
Eurasian Wigeon
Mareca penelope
At a Glance
This Old World counterpart to our American Wigeon is a regular winter visitor to the Pacific lowlands from Canada to California. Small numbers are also seen in winter in the northeast and elsewhere. In parts of the Pacific Northwest, examination of any winter flock of wigeon is likely to reveal a male Eurasian among them, because the two wigeon species invariably flock together.
All bird guide text and rangemaps adapted from Lives of North American Birds by Kenn Kaufman© 1996, used by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Category
Duck-like Birds, Surface Feeding Ducks
IUCN Status
Least Concern
Habitat
Freshwater Wetlands, Lakes, Ponds, and Rivers, Saltwater Wetlands
Region
Alaska and The North, California, Eastern Canada, Florida, Great Lakes, Mid Atlantic, New England, Northwest, Plains, Rocky Mountains, Southeast, Texas, Western Canada
Behavior
Direct Flight, Rapid Wingbeats
Population
2.000.000
Range & Identification
Migration & Range Maps
Reaches North America from both east and west. Birds banded in Iceland have been recovered in eastern Canada. Regular in migration in western and southern Alaska. Birds wintering in Pacific lowlands from British Columbia to California probably come from eastern Siberia.
Description
18-20" (46-51 cm). Male has bright rusty head with buff crown stripe; mostly gray body. Compare to male Redhead. Rare hybrids with American Wigeon have intermediate patterns (but American can have buff on crown also). Female very much like female American Wigeon, may have browner head.
Size
About the size of a Crow, About the size of a Mallard or Herring Gull
Color
Brown, Gray, Green, Orange, Red, White, Yellow
Wing Shape
Pointed, Tapered
Tail Shape
Pointed, Short, Wedge-shaped
Songs and Calls
Piping 2-note whistle, seldom heard in America.
Call Pattern
Flat, Undulating
Call Type
Whistle
Habitat
Marshes, lakes, bays, fields. In winter in North America often on marshy ponds with open ground nearby, or in flooded fields; also on shallow coastal estuaries and sheltered bays. Presence of American Wigeon is best key to good habitat for Eurasian Wigeon.
Sign up for Audubon's newsletter to learn more about birds like the Eurasian Wigeon
Behavior
Eggs
8-9, sometimes 6-12. Whitish to pale buff. Incubation is by female only, 24-25 days.
Young
Leave nest and go to water shortly after hatching. Young are tended by female but find all their own food. Age at first flight 40-45 days.
Feeding Behavior
Forages by grazing on land, by dabbling at surface of water, sometimes by submerging head and neck. May steal food brought to surface by other species such as coots or geese. May feed by day or night.
Diet
Almost entirely plant material. Diet in North America not well known; in Europe, eats wide variety of leaves, stems, roots, seeds. Eats some insects in summer.
Nesting
Known to breed only in Old World, but likely to be found nesting in North America eventually. Several males may compete with each other in courting one female, jostling for position. Displays of male include lifting tips of folded wings to expose white wing patch, raising head while giving whistled call, lowering bill to display buffy crown patch to female. Nest site is on ground under dense vegetation, usually near water. Nest is shallow depression lined with grass and with large amount of down.
Climate Vulnerability
Conservation Status
Numbers reported wintering in North America (mainly in west) have increased in recent decades, reflecting better coverage or actual population increase. Possibly breeding at some undiscovered site on this continent.
Climate Threats Facing the Eurasian Wigeon
Choose a temperature scenario below to see which threats will affect this species as warming increases. The same climate change-driven threats that put birds at risk will affect other wildlife and people, too.