Mergellus albellus
A petite, striking black-and-white sawbill — the "white nun" — that visits our lakes in hard winters.
Sawbill · 150 breeding pairs (UK)
In most ducks the male (drake) and female (hen) look quite different. Study both to identify any bird.
Snow white with a black mask, black back and delicate black lines, like a cracked-porcelain pattern.
Grey with a chestnut-brown head and white cheek — the "redhead".
Photos: Dick Daniels ( http://carolinabirds.org/ ) · CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Small fish and aquatic insects caught on dives.
Lakes, reservoirs and sheltered coasts, especially in cold winters.
Does not breed in the UK; nests in tree holes in the northern taiga.
Arrives in midwinter, with numbers peaking during cold snaps.
Males give a soft, bell-like display note.
Compare with close relatives.
Green list
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Mergus merganser
A large, sleek sawbill duck — a fish-hunter with a long, serrated red bill.
Green list
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Mergus serrator
A slim, fast-flying coastal sawbill with a shaggy crest, more at home on the sea than the goosander.