Eider
| Eider | |
|---|---|
| File:King Eider and Common Eider (13667559035).jpg | |
| King and common eider | |
| Scientific classification Edit this classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Anseriformes |
| Family: | Anatidae |
| Subfamily: | Merginae |
| Genus: | Somateria Leach, 1819 |
| Type species | |
| Anas spectabilis (king eider) Linnaeus, 1758
| |
| Species | |
| Synonyms | |
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The eiders (/ˈaɪ.dər/) are large seaducks in the genus Somateria. The three extant species all breed in the cooler latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere.[2]
The down feathers of eider ducks and some other ducks and geese are used to fill pillows and quilts—they have given the name to the type of quilt known as an eiderdown.[3]
Taxonomy
[edit | edit source]The genus Somateria was introduced in 1819 to accommodate the king eider by the English zoologist William Leach in an appendix to John Ross's account of his voyage to look for the Northwest Passage.[4][5] The name is derived from Ancient Greek σῶμα : sōma "body" (stem somat-) and ἔριον : erion "wool", referring to eiderdown.[6]
Steller's eider (Polysticta stelleri) is in a different genus despite its name.[7]
Species
[edit | edit source]The genus contains three extant species.[7]
| Common name | Scientific name and subspecies | Range | Size and ecology | IUCN status and estimated population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Common eider
File:Somateria mollissima -WWT Slimbridge, Gloucestershire, England -male-8a.jpg |
Somateria mollissima (Linnaeus, 1758) |
northern coasts of Europe, North America and eastern Siberia Map of range |
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
NT
|
| King eider
File:King Eider (Somateria spectabilis) (13667959444).jpg |
Somateria spectabilis (Linnaeus, 1758) |
northeast Europe, North America and Asia Map of range |
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
| Spectacled eider
File:San Diego Zoo 40 2016-05-13.jpg |
Somateria fischeri (Brandt, 1847) |
coasts of Alaska and northeastern Siberia. Map of range |
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
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Two undescribed species are known from fossils, one from Middle Oligocene rocks in Kazakhstan[8] and another from the Late Miocene or Early Pliocene of Lee Creek Mine, United States.[9] The former may not actually belong in this genus.[citation needed]
See also
[edit | edit source]The Barrow Duck-In, a 1961 protest against game preservation laws in Alaska, when many eider ducks were shot out-of-season to provoke mass arrests.
References
[edit | edit source]
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