Ducks, geese, and swans · Waterfowl
Long-tailed Duck
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Clangula hyemalis
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How to recognize it
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Male length 55–60 cm including tail; female 37–41 cm
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Male: central tail feathers up to 13 cm, pointed and held above water
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Adult male in winter: white head and neck, dark cheek patches, dark breast
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Often in flocks on water, dives for food from the bottom
About the species
In winter, males are mostly white, with a dark cheek patch and breast; their long, pointed tail is often held above the water. A pink band crosses the dark bill, while summer males are much darker on the head and back, with a white cheek. Females have brown backs and shorter pointed tails, and in winter their heads turn mostly white with a dark crown.
They gather in large, noisy flocks during migration and winter. Males give a musical yodel: "ow, ow, owal-ow." They dive for food, using their wings underwater, and can reach depths of 60 m.
They breed beside tundra pools, marshes, and northern coasts, then move to northern seas and large lakes for winter. Much of the year is spent offshore, sometimes far from land. They feed on the bottom, taking mollusks and crustaceans, with small fish also part of the diet.
Where to find
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In winter, scan the water far offshore along the Baltic or North Sea coast: Long-tailed Ducks gather in flocks and dive for mollusks and small crustaceans.
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In spring and early summer, listen near small tundra lakes and marshes for males' loud, throaty calls.
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At tundra lakes, after hatching, ducklings follow their mother to the water and pick insects from the surface.
