….I love them, they are perhaps my favourite duck and definitely one of the joys of winter. Here at Langford, we can get up to 10 birds wintering on site at any one time, present from November through to February.
Males are stunning creatures, with their black and white plumage and iridescent green heads and whilst females are duller as in most ducks, they are nevertheless, great to look at, with their dark chestnut coloured heads and pink spot towards the tip of their upper mandible. And of course, as their name suggests, both sexes have bright yellow eyes.
Their scientific name, Bucephala clangula is taken from the Greek and Latin meaning resounding bull-head, quite an apt name presumably describing their structure and vocalisations.
When in flight, their rapid wing beats produce a loud whistling sound, immediately identifying the birds as goldeneye. They nest in trees and do take advantage of nestboxes in some breeding areas. Whilst a few pairs do breed in the UK, most of the European breeding population inhabits northern and north-eastern Europe. The UK population increases in the winter, with birds from northern breeding grounds.
It is now, in late winter, that birds can be seen displaying – males performing sometimes complex courtship displays to groups of females in anticipation of the forthcoming breeding season. This is great to watch, as the males throw their heads backwards over their body, calling, sometimes splashing water with their feet and showing their breasts off to females. This is often done in groups, with multiple males and females. They can be seen at doing this at Langford from late-January and into February. Look for them on Phase 1, where they can be easily viewed from the viewing screen on the public footpath.
Male goldeneye displaying. Ben Hall (rspb-images.com)
Female goldeneye. Ben Hall (rspb-images.com)