Birds of St. Christopher Camp & Conference Center

The Pintail or Northern Pintail (Anas acuta) is a duck with wide geographic distribution that breeds in the northern areas of Europe, Asia and North America. It is migratory and winters south of its breeding range to the equator. Unusually for a bird with such a large range, it has no geographical subspecies if the possibly conspecific duck Eaton's Pintail is considered to be a separate species. less ↑

The Black or American Scoter (Melanitta americana) is a large sea duck, 43 to 49 centimeters in length. Together with the Common Scoter M. nigra, it forms the subgenus Oidemia; the two are sometimes considered conspecific, the Black Scoter then being referred to as M. nigra americana. Its French name, used in parts of its Canadian range, is macreuse noire (also meaning "black scoter"). less ↑

The Velvet Scoter (Melanitta fusca), also called a Velvet Duck or whitewing (not to be confused with the white-winged scoter), is a large sea duck, which breeds over the far north of Europe and Asia west of the Yenisey basin. A small, isolated population nests in eastern Turkey. The East Siberian and North American White-winged Scoter is sometimes considered conspecific with the Velvet Scoter, and its two constituent subspecies are then known as M. f. stejnegeri... less ↑

The Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis) is a small North American diving duck that migrates south as far as Central America in winter. It is colloquially known as the Little Bluebill or Broadbill because of its distinctive blue bill. The origin of the name scaup may stem from the bird's preference for feeding on scalp – the Scottish word for clams, oysters, and mussels; however, some credit it to the female's discordant scaup call as the name's... less ↑