Texas Waterfowl

Common Goldeneye

115 males brood ducklings, will attempt to drive other ducks away from their young, and will also lead them across lakes or land in search of better foraging areas. The amalgamation of broods is common; amalgamated broods are typically attended by only one female. Females abandon young when they are five to six weeks old. Ducklings fledge at 45–55 days. APPEARANCE Breeding: Adult males have a black head, hind neck, back, and rump. They have a large, conspicuous white wedge-shaped patch on their puffy, iridescent black head. Their breast, fore-neck, sides, and belly are white. Adult females have a dark brown head, upper neck, and back, and they have a small, elliptical white patch below their eye. The front of their breast is whitish, and their sides and belly are dark gray. Adult males have a bluish-gray bill, and adult females have a dark bill. In spring, male and female Buffleheads in California averaged 1.6 and 1.5 pounds, respectively. Nonbreeding: In both males and females, this plumage is similar to the breeding plumage of adult females. However, males tend to have darker, slightly iridescent heads and larger white head patches. Subadult: Both immature females and immature males look similar to adult females during their first winter. Males do not acquire their complete black-and-white adult breeding plumage until their second fall. SOURCES introduction: Gauthier 1993a; Dugger et al. 1994; Eadie et al. 1995, 2000; Hepp and Bellrose 1995; Mallory and Metz 1999. texas distribution: Bolen and Chapman 1981; Seyffert 2001; White 2002; Lockwood and Freeman 2004; Eubanks et al. 2006; Baar et al. 2008. texas harvest: USFWS 2005, 2006, 2007a, 2007b. population status: NAWMP 2004. diet: Gammonley and Heitmeyer 1990; Thompson and Ankney 2002; Schummer et al. 2008. range and habitats: Erskine 1959, 1960, 1972; Boyd 1974; Bellrose 1980; Limpert 1980; Vermeer 1982; Peterson and Gauthier 1985; Gauthier 1987b, 1987c, 1988, 1989, 1993a; Gauthier and Smith 1987; Gammonley and Heitmeyer 1990; Wormington and Leach 1992; Knutsen and King 2004. reproduction: Erskine 1972; Bellrose 1980; Savard 1985, 1987; Gauthier 1987a, 1987b, 1989, 1990; Gammonley and Heitmeyer 1990; Evans et al. 2002. appearance : Palmer 1976b; Bellrose 1980; Gammonley and Heitmeyer 1990; Gauthier 1993a. COMMON GOLDENEYE Bucephala clangula Common Goldeneyes have a circumpolar range, breeding across the boreal forests of North America, Europe, and Asia. They are 1 of 19 Texas waterfowl that breed in both the New and Old Worlds. This group includes Barrow’s Goldeneyes, Black Scoters, Brant, Common Eiders, Common Mergansers, Fulvous WhistlingDucks , Gadwall, Greater Scaup, Greater White-fronted Geese, Green-winged Teal, Harlequin Ducks, King Eiders, Long-tailed Ducks, Mallards, Northern Pintails, Northern Shovelers, Red-breasted Mergansers, and Snow Geese. Two additional North American species, Ruddy Ducks and Canada Geese, have been introduced to Europe. sea ducks 116 TEXAS DISTRIBUTION Breeding: Common Goldeneyes do not breed in Texas. Migration and Winter: Migrants are rare to uncommon across much of the state. Common Goldeneyes are most common from November through March. They rarely linger into spring. From 2000 to 2008 they averaged 7,142 during the Texas Mid-winter Waterfowl Survey (TPWD unpublished). Most are found in marshes and estuaries of the Coastal Prairies (TPWD unpublished). Their distribution in the Coastal Prairies is skewed; they are locally common along the upper coast and very rare along the lower coast. They are also locally common on some large reservoirs in central and eastern Texas. Common Goldeneye (adult male). Photograph courtesy of Glenn Bartley/VIREO, taken January 14, 2008, Victoria, British Columbia. sea ducks 117 TEXAS HARVEST From 1999 to 2006, harvest in Texas averaged 850 birds annually. This is about 1 percent of their estimated annual US harvest. POPULATION STATUS Common Goldeneyes likely have a stable population. From 1994 to 2003 the North American population was estimated to number 1.3 million annually. DIET Common Goldeneyes primarily forage by diving. During the breeding season, caddis fly larvae, dragonfly nymphs, and damselfly nymphs are important foods. Wintering Common Goldeneyes on the Detroit River and in Lake Ontario primarily consumed wildcelery, amphipods, and zebra mussels. RANGE AND HABITATS Breeding: Common Goldeneyes breed in the boreal forests of North America from Alaska through eastern Canada. They also breed in the Canadian Parklands, around the Great Lakes, and locally along the US–Canada border. Breeding pairs are primarily associated with rivers and medium- to large-sized lakes. Preformed, existing cavities are required for nesting.They will...