Clangula – Long-tailed duck

One of the most distinctive and charming sea ducks of the Northern Hemisphere, instantly recognisable by the male’s long, ribbon-like tail feathers and ever-changing plumage. In winter, drake long-tailed ducks (often called “oldsquaws” in older books) are mostly white with dark patches on the cheek, back, and breast, and a long black tail that trails well behind them like a streamer.

In summer, they flip the pattern: mostly dark chocolate-brown with a pale face, but still with that elegant tail. Females lack the long tail and are smaller and softer in colour, but share the same cute, round-headed profile and small bill patterned in black and grey (males show a pinkish band on the bill in winter). Unlike many ducks that sit fairly flat on the water, long-tailed ducks ride a little low, with their tail slightly raised and their head held alert, giving them a perky, buoyant look on rolling seas.

When the short Arctic summer ends, long-tailed ducks stage an impressive shift to the sea. Huge numbers migrate to winter on cold coastal waters, especially shallow continental-shelf seas. In North America they gather on the North Atlantic and Great Lakes; in Europe and Asia they flood into the Baltic, North Sea, Barents Sea and other northern coasts. There, they are highly specialised diving ducks, often feeding in water 10–30 metres (33 – 98 feet) deep, and known to dive to at least 50–60 metres (164-197 feet)—among the deepest-diving of all ducks. They use their wings as well as their feet underwater, “flying” after prey in the dim, chilly depths. Their diet in winter is dominated by animal food: small crustaceans, molluscs and marine worms on the seafloor, along with insect larvae and other invertebrates. On calm days, flocks of long-tailed ducks can be seen repeatedly disappearing and popping back up like bubbles, calling in soft, yodelling voices that carry far over the waves.