picture by J R Compton. http://www.JRCompton.com/photos/The_Birds/J/
Interesting Facts
- The day newborn Lesser Scaup chicks are b
orn
they are already able to dive underwater, but do
not stay under very long because of their high
buoyancy - When taken as prey by a red fox, adult
Lesser Scaup sometimes pretend to be dead which
is characterized by them not moving, extending
their head with their eyes open, and holding
their wings close to their body
image above courtesy of J R Compton. http://www.JRCompton.com/photos/The_Birds/J/
- Over the years, in order to accommodate to the high populations of zebra mussels available in Lake Erie, Lesser Scaup have shifted their migration patterns to feed on this species. This is not such a good thing because, since zebra mussels are filter feeders, this food source exposes Lesser Scaup to various environmental contaminants
-
Aythya affinis were first classified by
Thomas Campbell Eyton in 1838 - Sometimes female Lesser Scaup lay a few of their eggs in nests belonging to other female Lesser Scaup
- There are various names for a group of ducks including a "paddling", a "raft", a "team", a "flush", and a "brace"
- Because it is quite difficult to distinguish
between the Lesser Scaup and the Greater Scaup(Aythya
marila), there is no estimated population
for each species separately. Instead it is a
combination of both of the species.
To view some amazing pictures of this amazing
organism visit the Gallery
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