by Laurie Childree

Created on: April 22, 2008   Last Updated: August 23, 2008

The Barrow's Golden eye (Bucephala islandica) belongs to the family of Anatidae and the subfamily of Anatinae. This duck is found in the western mountains of North America; it is thought to have come from a population of ducks that originated in Iceland. This particular species of duck prefers to live in a forest habitat with mature trees that offer sufficient room for nesting.

When migrating they will stop frequently and eat at lakes and rivers. The barrow's golden eye will frequent marine areas in shallow protected bays, estuaries and large lakes containing sandy, gravel or rocky terrain during the winter.

A diving duck of medium size they are black and white in color with a chunky body. The head of a Barrow's Golden eye is large; the males have a black back and head with a crescent shaped white spot on face. They are seventeen to nineteen inches in length and weigh sixteen to forty-seven ounces. The females are the smaller of the species and gray in color with a brown head. These ducks are silent expect when courting.

The eyes of a Barrow's golden eye are yellow and they posses a sloped forehead with the crown being flatter and a peak at the front of the crown. The bill is small and stubby; they posses white patches only visible during flight. The juvenile of the species looks like the adult female just with a darker bill in most cases. The female barrow's golden eye is often hard to tell apart from the common golden eye female.

Adult males of the species will alternate plumage from fall through the early summer. They have a glossy purplish head with a white patch between the eyes and the bill.

Females normally do not breed until they reach the age of three. The life span of the Barrow's golden eye is eighteen years. The female will lay her eggs in others nest and when they hatch different female ducklings come together and are cared for by one female. Nests are usually in the cavities of large trees, rock crevices, and even in bushes or on the ground when there is not an available tree.

Entire groups of the barrow's golden eye will dive at the same time foraging around pilings mostly underwater. They are territorial ducks that defend the territory they occupy against other species.

The diet consists of aquatic insects which make up the bulk of the diet and prefers ponds without insect eating fish. In the winter they will eat mollusks, crustaceans, fish and fish eggs as well.

Sources:
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBi rds/BirdGuide/Barrows_Goldeneye.html
http://www.mbr-p wrc.usgs.gov/Infocenter/i1520id.html
http://birdweb.o rg/birdweb/bird_details.aspx?id=90

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