Species: Melanitta nigra

Common Scoter
Species
Birds
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Salish Sea-reliant birds
Terrestrial vertebrates: birds
Puget Sound Partnership indicator species: birds
Species of concern in the Salish Sea

Science Review:

9. Marine birds

Articles:

Marine and terrestrial bird indicators for Puget Sound

A December 2013 report identifies marine and terrestrial bird species for use as indicators within the Puget Sound Partnership's "Vital Signs" for ecosystem health. 

Black Scoter (Melanitta nigra). Photo by Dave Menke, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Marine birds

More than 70 bird species regularly utilize Puget Sound during some or all stages of their life histories, but only a portion of these are actively being investigated.

Brandt's cormorant (Phalacrocorax penicillatus). Photo by Finley and Bohlman, courtesy U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Craniata
Class

Aves

Order

Anseriformes

Family

Anatidae

Genus

Melanitta

Natureserve Explorer
Source:
Classification
Informal Taxonomy
Animals, Vertebrates - Birds - Waterfowl
Formal Taxonomy
Animalia - Craniata - Aves - Anseriformes - Anatidae - Melanitta
Short General Description
A sea duck (scoter).
Migration
false - false - true - Migrates northward March-May, southward September-October. Atlantic Flyway wintering population is thought to come from Labrador and the west coast of Hudson Bay (Kehoe 1994).
Non-migrant
false
Locally Migrant
false
Length
48
Weight
1100
NatureServe Global Status Rank
G5
Global Status Last Reviewed
1997-10-01
Global Status Last Changed
1996-11-21
Other Status

LC - Least concern

Conservation Status Map
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