King eider
A large Arctic sea duck with a crown-like bill knob.
The king eider (Somateria spectabilis) is a big sea duck found along Arctic coasts in northeast Europe, North America, and Asia. It’s known for how different the males and females look—males have a flashy, multicolored head and a bright orange knob above the bill that looks like a crown, which is why it’s called “king.” For most of the year, these birds live in coastal marine areas up north, then head to the Arctic tundra in June and July to breed. The female lays four to seven eggs in a simple scrape on the ground, which she lines with grass and down from her own body.
- Scientific name
- Somateria spectabilis
- Length
- 50–70 cm (20–28 in)
- Wingspan
- 86–102 cm (34–40 in)
- Mean weight (male)
- 1.668 kg (3.68 lb)
- Mean weight (female)
- 1.567 kg (3.45 lb)
- Clutch size
- 2–7 eggs
- Incubation period
- 22–23 days
Lore & Background
Carl Linnaeus first described the king eider in 1758 in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae, placing it in the genus Anas. In 1819, William Elford Leach moved it to the genus Somateria, where it remains. The genus name combines Greek sōma ('body') and erion ('wool'), referring to its thick down; the specific name spectabilis is Latin for 'showy' or 'remarkable'. The common name 'king eider' translates its Icelandic name, inspired by the orange knob above the male's bill and its multicolored plumage suggesting royal robes.
The king eider is sexually dimorphic: males are slightly larger and, in breeding plumage, much more colorful than females. The male has a mostly black body, buff-tinged white breast, pale bluish grey head and neck, pale green cheek, and a red bill with a large yellow knob. Females are warm brown with blackish chevrons on upperparts and flanks, a buffy spot at the bill base, and a buffy eye ring. Juveniles are greyish brown, and young males take three years to achieve full adult plumage.
Reader's Guide
The king eider is a circumpolar species found throughout the Arctic, breeding on tundra coasts of Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Svalbard, and Russia, and wintering in arctic and subarctic marine areas such as the Bering Sea, west Greenland, eastern Canada, and northern Norway. Wintering flocks can exceed 100,000 birds. Its foraging varies by season: at sea it dives for benthic invertebrates; during breeding it dabbles on freshwater lakes for small invertebrates. The female builds a scrape nest lined with grass and down, incubates 2–7 eggs for 22–23 days, and young are raised collectively by females. The male's song is a quavering, dove-like cooing; females make low clucks, grunts, and growls. The oldest known king eider lived at least 18 years 11 months. Listed as least concern by the IUCN, it is subject to the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds. Predators of eggs and young include glaucous gull, common raven, parasitic jaeger, and Arctic fox. The king eider is traditionally hunted in spring by Yup'ik people, who call it qengallek.
Did You Know?
- The king eider's specific name spectabilis is Latin for 'showy', 'remarkable', or 'worth seeing'.
- The oldest known king eider was a female that lived at least 18 years 11 months, ringed in Alaska in 1940 and shot in 1958.
- Wintering flocks of king eiders can exceed 100,000 birds on suitable coastal waters.
- The male king eider has a distinctive orange, crown-like knob above its bill, which gives the species its common name.
More in Birds of the Arctic 1-24
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