Scotland’s wintering population of wigeons will be arriving over the next month. RSPB Scotland’s Jess Barrett brings you five facts you need to know about these ducks.
Five facts you need to know about wigeons
1. Male wigeons are very distinctive
Wigeons are smaller than mallards with a round head and small bill. The males have very distinctive plumage with a yellow forehead, pink breast and grey body with a white stripe on their wings. The females are a more mottled reddish or grey-brown colour but similar in shape to the males.
2. 400 pairs breed in Scotland
While most wigeons are winter migrants there are a number of them here all year round. Up to 400 pairs breed in Scotland, mostly in the north. Nesting begins in April or May and around eight or nine eggs are laid in each clutch. Breeding is the only time of year these birds will be solitary; the rest of the year they are found in large flocks.
3. Wigeon chicks fly at 40 days old
Wigeon chicks are able to feed themselves as soon as they hatch but their mother will take care of them while they are small. At 40 days old they are able to fly and become fully independent at this point.
4. Up to 96,000 wigeons winter in Scotland
Numbers of wigeon increase dramatically in Scotland over the winter. Between 76,000 to 96,000 of them will migrate from Iceland and northern Europe to spend the colder months here. Their numbers are at their highest when Europe has severe weather. Wigeons arrive in October so keep an eye out from them around coastal marshland and lowland lochs.
5. They have a musical call
Unlike most ducks whose quacks tend to be rather tuneless male wigeons have a far carrying, two-syllable whistle that sounds a bit like “wee-ooo”. The wigeon name partly imitates this tuneful call. Females have a harsher growl sounding voice.
You can find out more about wigeons and where you can see them here.