Species
Red-breasted merganser
Mergus serrator
A shaggy-crested, fish-hunting duck that winters in Georgia's sounds and bays in large, busy flocks.
Photo Needsmoreritalin (opens in a new tab) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab)
At a glance
- Size
- About 51 to 64 cm long
- Weight
- About 800 to 1,350 g
- Habitat
- Coastal sounds, bays, inlets and large lakes
- Diet
- Small fish and crustaceans
- In Georgia
- A common winter visitor on the coast
- Voice
- Mostly quiet
- Rabies vector
- No
Identification
- Key marks
- Long, thin, serrated red bill; shaggy double crest
- Male
- Green head; white collar; speckled rusty breast; grey sides
- Female
- Grey body with a rusty head that fades into the neck
- Told apart from
- Common merganser, a rarer visitor, whose male has a clean white breast and female a sharp line between head and neck
- Where to look
- Coastal waters and inlets, November to April
Behaviour
Red-breasted mergansers hunt fish in groups, sometimes swimming in lines to drive fish into shallow water. They are among the fastest-flying ducks.
Why they matter
Mergansers are skilled underwater hunters, and their thin, saw-edged bills are an adaptation for gripping slippery fish. They rely on healthy schools of small fish in coastal waters, which also feed pelicans, dolphins and many other animals.
Reproduction and lifecycle
Nest — A down-lined hollow on the ground, hidden under shrubs, near northern coasts and lakes
Eggs — Usually 7 to 10
Incubation — About 29 to 35 days
Ducklings — Leave the nest within a day
Flight — At about eight to nine weeks
Lifespan — Wild birds over ten years are recorded
Living around people
- Fishing line and lures are a hazard for mergansers that chase fish near piers and jetties.
Misconceptions
- Mergansers are not real ducks. They are ducks, specialised for catching fish.
Related species
Seasonal activity
When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breeding | Jan: no | Feb: no | Mar: no | Apr: no | May: no | Jun: no | Jul: no | Aug: no | Sep: no | Oct: no | Nov: no | Dec: no |
| Active nests | Jan: no | Feb: no | Mar: no | Apr: no | May: no | Jun: no | Jul: no | Aug: no | Sep: no | Oct: no | Nov: no | Dec: no |
| Notes | Wintering in flocks | Wintering; courtship displays | Migrating north | Last birds leaving | Nesting in the north | Ducklings hatching | Ducklings growing | Adults moulting | Young flying | Migration begins | Arriving on the coast | Wintering |
Where it lives
Recorded in 65 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.
United States
- Alabamain winter
- Alaska
- Arkansasin winter
- Californiain winter
- Coloradoin winter
- Connecticutin winter
- Delawarein winter
- District of Columbiain winter
- Floridain winter
- Georgiain winter
- Idahoin winter
- Illinoisin winter
- Indianain winter
- Iowain winter
- Kansasin winter
- Kentuckyin winter
- Louisianain winter
- Mainein winter
- Marylandin winter
- Massachusettsin winter
- Michiganin winter
- Minnesotain winter
- Mississippiin winter
- Missouriin winter
- Montanain winter
- Nebraskain winter
- Nevadain winter
- New Hampshirein winter
- New Jerseyin winter
- New Mexicoin winter
- New Yorkin winter
- North Carolinain winter
- North Dakotain winter
- Ohioin winter
- Oklahomain winter
- Oregonin winter
- Pennsylvaniain winter
- Rhode Islandin winter
- South Carolinain winter
- South Dakotain winter
- Tennesseein winter
- Texasin winter
- Utahin winter
- Vermontin winter
- Virginiain winter
- Washingtonin winter
- West Virginiain winter
- Wisconsinin winter
- Wyomingin winter
Canada
If you found one
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