- Mergus squamatus
Identification
52–62 cm (20½-24½ in)
- Long, serrated orange-red bills, legs and feet
Male
- Glossy greenish-black head and neck
- Long, droopy, shaggy crest
- Greyish-black upperparts
- Creamy-white breast and underparts
Female
- Buffiy head and neck
- Wispy crest
Distribution
Asia: found in Manchuria and extreme south-eastern Siberia; winters to southern China, Korea and Japan (occasionally Taiwan).
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species[1].
Habitat
They breed on forested fast-flowing rivers and streams. Moving to larger lakes and slower rivers, reservoirs, lagoons and the coast outside of the breeding season..
Behaviour
Breeding
They line a tree hole with down at heights up to 18 m. The clutch consists of 4-12 eggs, which is incubated by the female for 31-35 days.
Diet
The diet consists of small fish as well as insect larvae, shrimps, crayfish and beetles.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2015. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2015, with updates to August 2015. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved February 2016)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Scaly-sided Merganser. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 14 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Scaly-sided_Merganser
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
