Profile
In flight
Waterfowl
Smew
Mergellus albellus
- epic
- 70 km/h
- Least Concern
The male is pure white with fine black lace markings, earning him the nickname 'cracked ice.' Dives to the bottom for fish.
- Population
- Global: ~58,700–144,000 mature individuals (~88,000–216,000 total individuals, 2023 data); trend unknown (European segment relatively stable over three generations, but global trend uncertain)
- Habitat
- Breeds on fish-rich freshwater oligotrophic lakes, pools, oxbow lakes, and slow rivers/backwaters within northern boreal/taiga (coniferous and mixed) forest, nesting in tree cavities (often old Black Woodpecker holes) near shallow water; winters on large freshwater lakes and reservoirs, ice-free rivers, and sheltered brackish coastal lagoons, estuaries, and bays.
- Fun fact
- The strikingly patterned adult male Smew — snow-white with black markings and a bushy crest — is often nicknamed the "panda duck" or described as having a "cracked ice" plumage pattern.
- Range
- Breeds across the northern Palearctic taiga from Scandinavia east to Chukotka/Kamchatka in Russia; winters throughout much of Europe (Baltic and Black/Caspian Seas, British Isles, Low Countries) and Asia (Caspian Sea, eastern China, Korea, Japan, northern India), with vagrants recorded in North Africa and North America (notably the Aleutian Islands, Alaska).
- Diet
- A diving duck that catches prey underwater using a hooked, serrated bill; feeds mainly on aquatic invertebrates (insect larvae, crustaceans, molluscs), amphibians, and some plant matter during the breeding season, shifting to a diet dominated by small fish in winter and early spring.
- Size
- 0.41 m
- Wingspan
- 0.62 m
- Lifespan
- 9 years
