View allAll Photos Tagged somate
Vigur, Ísafjörður Bay, Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Common Eider, Stykkishólmur, Breiðafjörður, Iceland
Taken on June 13, 2015 (uploaded 8/5/15)
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Common Eider, male, female, Keflavík, Iceland
Taken on June 11, 2015 (uploaded 8/15/15)
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Common Eider, juvenile male, male, female, Keflavík, Iceland
Taken on June 11, 2015 (uploaded 8/15/15)
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Vigur, Ísafjörður Bay, Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Vigur, Ísafjörður Bay, Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Seydisfjörður, Iceland
Common Eider Duck family
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Vigur, Ísafjörður Bay, Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Seydisfjörður, Iceland
Common Eider Duck family in the reflection of the "Ocean Diamond"
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Vigur, Ísafjörður Bay, Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Jökulsárlón ("glacier lagoon," Jökull = glacier, lón = lagoon), Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Vigur, Ísafjörður Bay, Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Jökulsárlón ("glacier lagoon," Jökull = glacier, lón = lagoon), Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Keflavík, Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Marina and Eyjafjörður, Akureyri, Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Vigur, Ísafjörður Bay, Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
Flatey Island, Bay of Skjálfandi, Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Fratercula-arctica/fratercu...
Atlantic Puffins are one of the top photo models in bird photography! The colorful heavy beak and the white face is so characteristic that it cannot be confused with any other species.
Note that it has red legs and feet like the Black Guillemots but unlike all other auks of the region. A characteristic feature of the Puffins contrary to other auks is their "at rest" position. They usually stand upright on their feet. Other auks usually sit on their lower legs.
Also, the Puffin can walk much better than other auks. It is the most common sea bird of Iceland. Like other auks they breed in colonies. One egg is laid generally in burrows on the boundary of rock and turf layers but also in other protected spots. Apart form being common in Iceland they are common throughout the Atlantic. It is quite surprising that this bird is so little shy towards humans as their colonies have been "harvested" for centuries.
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Thirty of the thirty-seven species of bird in Iceland are found on Flatey Island during the breeding season - such as Atlantic Puffins, Arctic Terns, Whimbrels, and Plovers.
Vigur, Ísafjörður Bay, Iceland
www.iceland-nh.net/birds/data/Somateria-mollissima/somate...
The Common Eider is the producer of the eider down. Eider down is harvested in Iceland by specialized eider farmers.
Eiders can be found everywhere along the coasts of Iceland. They feed on mussels and other hard shelled-crustaceans like sea-snails, crabs, etc. This food is swallowed as a whole and grinded in the stomach. They also feed to some extent on sea weeds. As a result they can be found much around un-deep shore lines and rocky coasts.
Breeding is done in loose colonies in protected areas, often in combination with other birds, like terns. The female does all the breeding and will stay on the nest when it is approached by humans. It is said that one could even caress the birds in that stage.
Once the chicks have hatched the female leads them immediately to the water where they are safer - but not safe ! - from full and Skua predation. Females with chicks then form larger groups sometimes up to a hundred birds in order to offer better protection against predators. Eiders are both migratory and residents. On Iceland birds from Greenland and Spitzbergen stay during winter times.
King Eider: the females are almost indistinguishable from the Common Eider. The male King Eider is easy to tell apart: it has a red bill and a orange/red shielded forehead which is mainly blue on top and back to the neck.
Hybrids are also regularly recorded. It seems that the male king eider will mate with common eider females whilst female king eiders are not seen much during summer on Iceland.
Colors of the male plumage: When young male chicks grow up they are first rather dark brown ducks. Over a period of two years they have a number of intermittent phases. Only in spring of the third year do they get the full adult plumage, characterized by an all white back. Birds that have brown spots on their backs and faces are not yet fully adult.