General

Lesser Scaup: Medium-sized diving duck with finely barred gray back and gray-washed white underparts. Head, neck, and breast are black with purple gloss. Bill is blue-gray. Wings are black with large, white patches; tail is black. Female is brown overall with white belly, wing patches, and base of bill. Juvenile resembles female. Nonbreeding adults are duller than breeding adults.

Range and Habitat

Lesser Scaup: Breeds from interior Alaska and northern Canada south to Colorado, Iowa, and occasionally farther east. Winters along coasts south from British Columbia and Massachusetts to Gulf of Mexico; also inland south of Colorado and the Great Lakes. Prefers ponds and marshes; during migration and winter is found on lakes, rivers, and ponds, and in the southern states on saltwater.

Breeding and Nesting

Lesser Scaup: Six to fifteen olive or olive buff eggs are laid in a down-lined cup of grass hidden in vegetation, often located some distance from water. Incubation ranges from 21 to 28 days and is carried out by the female.

Foraging and Feeding

Lesser Scaup: Feeds on seeds, aquatic vegetation, crustaceans, mollusks, aquatic insects, and small fish; forages by diving.

Vocalization

Lesser Scaup: Although seldom heard, makes sharp whistles and guttural scolding notes.

Similar Species

Lesser Scaup: Greater Scaup is larger and has white wing stripe that extends through the secondaries onto the primaries; male has whiter sides and a more rounded head.