Melanitta nigra -- (Linnaeus, 1758) ANIMALIA -- CHORDATA -- AVES -- ANSERIFORMES -- ANATIDAE Common names: Common Scoter; Black Scoter Assessment Information European Red List Status LC -- Least Concern, (IUCN version 3.1) European Red List Assessment Year published: 2015 Date assessed: 2015-03-31 Assessor(s): BirdLife International Reviewer(s): Symes, A. Compiler(s): Ashpole, J., Burfield, I., Ieronymidou, C., Pople, R., Wheatley, H. & Wright, L. Assessment Rationale European regional assessment: Least Concern (LC) EU27 regional assessment: Least Concern (LC) In Europe this species has an extremely large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence 10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). The population trend is not known, but the population is not believed to be decreasing sufficiently rapidly to approach the thresholds under the population trend criterion (30% decline over ten years or three generations). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern in Europe. Within the EU27 this species has a very large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence 10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). The population trend appears to be stable, and hence the species does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion (30% decline over ten years or three generations). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern in the EU27. Occurrence Countries/Territories of Occurrence Native: Austria; Azerbaijan; Belarus; Belgium; Bulgaria; Czech Republic; Denmark; Estonia; Finland; France; Germany; Greece; Hungary; Iceland; Ireland, Rep. of; Italy; Latvia; Lithuania; Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of; Netherlands; Norway; Svalbard and Jan Mayen (to NO); Poland; Portugal; Romania; Russian Federation; Slovakia; Slovenia; Spain; Sweden; Switzerland; Turkey; Ukraine; United Kingdom; Gibraltar (to UK) Vagrant: Croatia; Cyprus; Greenland (to DK); Liechtenstein; Malta; Montenegro; Serbia Population The European population is estimated at 107,000-131,000 pairs, which equates to 214,000-263,000 mature individuals. The population in the EU27 is estimated at 6,100-9,900 pairs, which equates to 12,200-19,800 mature individuals. For details of national estimates, see Supplementary PDF. In Europe the population size trend is unknown. In the EU27 the population size is estimated to be stable. For details of national estimates, see Supplementary PDF. Trend Habitats and Ecology The species breeds on Arctic dwarf heath (Snow and Perrins 1998, Kear 2005) or boggy tundra on pools, small lakes, streams (Carboneras and Kirwan 2014) and slow-flowing rivers (Snow and Perrins 1998). It shows a preference for freshwater habitats (Carboneras and Kirwan 2014) with low banks (Flint et al. 1984), small islets (Kear 2005) and high abundances of aquatic invertebrate and plant life positioned in swampy valleys or among mossy bogs (Flint et al. 1984), especially where suitable shrubs (e.g. willow or birch) and
herbaceous vegetation are available for nesting cover (Johnsgard 1978, Snow and Perrins 1998, Kear 2005). Although the species may use freshwater lakes on migration the majority moult and overwinter at sea on shallow inshore waters less than 20 m deep with abundant benthic fauna (Kear 2005), generally between 500 m and c.2 km from the shore (Snow and Perrins 1998). It arrives on its breeding grounds between late-april and May and breeds from late-may onwards (Madge and Burn 1988) in highly dispersed (Kear 2005) solitary pairs. The nest is a scrape on the ground hidden amongst vegetation (Carboneras and Kirwan 2014) close to water or placed further away in dwarf heath (Kear 2005). Its diet consists predominantly of molluscs, especially during the winter, although it occasionally takes other aquatic invertebrates such as crustaceans, worms (Carboneras and Kirwan 2014), echinoderms, isopods, amphipods (Kear 2005) and insects as well as small fish (Carboneras and Kirwan 2014) and fish eggs (Snow and Perrins 1998). On the breeding grounds the species may also consume plant matter such as seeds, roots and tubers (Carboneras and Kirwan 2014) and the vegetative parts of aquatic plants (Flint et al. 1984). This species is strongly migratory (Carboneras and Kirwan 2014). Habitats & Altitude Habitat (level 1 - level 2) Importance Occurrence Marine Neritic - Macroalgal/Kelp suitable non-breeding Marine Neritic - Pelagic suitable non-breeding Marine Neritic - Seagrass (Submerged) suitable non-breeding Marine Neritic - Subtidal Loose Rock/pebble/gravel suitable non-breeding Marine Neritic - Subtidal Rock and Rocky Reefs suitable non-breeding Marine Neritic - Subtidal Sandy suitable non-breeding Marine Neritic - Subtidal Sandy-Mud suitable non-breeding Shrubland - Boreal suitable breeding Wetlands (inland) - Tundra Wetlands (incl. pools and temporary waters from major breeding snowmelt) Altitude Occasional altitudinal limits Threats The large concentrations of this species that occur during the moulting period and in winter are highly vulnerable to oil spills (Gorski et al. 1977, Nikolaeva et al. 2006), chronic oil pollution, human disturbance and the degradation of food resources as a result of oil exploration (Nikolaeva et al. 2006). The species also suffers disturbance from high-speed ferries (Larsen and Laubek 2005) and populations wintering off the coasts of western Europe are threatened by offshore wind farms (Kear 2005, Fox and Petersen 2006, Petersen 2006). The effects of commercial exploitation of benthic shellfish also poses a threat (through competition for food resources), and the species's breeding habitats are threatened by eutrophication in some areas (Kear 2005). The species is susceptible to avian influenza so may be threatened by future outbreaks of the virus (Melville and Shortridge 2006). The species is hunted in some areas (e.g. Bregnballe et al. 2006) and its eggs used to be (and possibly still are) harvested in Iceland (Gudmundsson 1979). Threats & Impacts Threat (level 1) Threat (level 2) Impact and Agriculture & Industrial aquaculture aquaculture Ongoing Majority (50-90%) Causing/Could cause fluctuations Medium Impact Species mortality Biological resource Fishing & harvesting use aquatic resources Ongoing Majority (50-90%) Slow, Significant Medium Impact (unintentional effects: (large scale) [harvest]) Ecosystem degradation; Indirect ecosystem effects Biological resource use Hunting & trapping terrestrial animals (intentional use - species is the target) Species mortality; Reduced reproductive success
Threats & Impacts Threat (level 1) Threat (level 2) Impact and Climate change & Habitat shifting & severe weather alteration Future Whole (>90%) Unknown Unknown Ecosystem degradation; Indirect ecosystem effects Energy production & mining Invasive and other problematic species, genes & diseases Pollution Renewable energy Ecosystem degradation; Species disturbance Avian Influenza Virus (H subtype) Future Majority (50-90%) Slow, Significant Low Impact Species mortality Agricultural & forestry effluents Ongoing Minority (<50%) Slow, Significant (nutrient loads) Low Impact Ecosystem degradation Pollution Oil spills Ongoing Majority (50-90%) Slow, Significant Medium Impact Ecosystem degradation; Species mortality; Reduced reproductive success Transportation & Shipping lanes service corridors Species disturbance Conservation Conservation Actions Underway EU Birds Directive Annex II and III. CMS Appendix II. Current measures for the protection of this species are not sufficient and the species suffers from a lack of knowledge and research interest (Kear 2005). In the U.K. the species is listed as Red on the national Red List and is a U.K. Priority Species and Biodiversity Action Plan species. It is also listed as Endangered on the Red List of Baltic Wintering Birds (HELCOM 2013). Research and monitoring has been initiated by several organisations to identify the driving factors behind its decline and better understand the species's movements (WWT 2013). Conservation Actions Proposed Management actions at non-breeding sites are essential to maintain the health of this species. Measures should be taken to minimise bycatch in fisheries, regulate shipping traffic, implement and enforce hunting regulations (Bellebaum et al. 2012, HELCOM 2013), prevent accidental and chronic oil pollution and preserve feeding grounds (HELCOM 2013). Research and monitoring should continue, particularly into the effects of climate change on the species and its prey (Bellebaum et al. 2012). Bibliography Bellebaum, J., Larsson, K. and Kube, J. 2012. Research on Sea Ducks in the Baltic Sea. Gotland University, Visby, Sweden Bregnballe, T., Noer, H., Christensen, T.K., Clausen, P., Asferg, T., Fox, A.D. and Delany, S. 2006. Sustainable hunting of migratory waterbirds: the Danish approach. In: Boere, G., Galbraith, C. and Stroud, D. (ed.), Waterbirds around the world, pp. 854-860. The Stationary Office, Edinburgh, UK. Carboneras, C. and Kirwan, G.M. 2014. Common Scoter (Melanitta nigra). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. and de Juana, E. (eds.) 2014. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from http://www.hbw.com/node/52920 on 27 February 2015). Flint, V.E., Boehme, R.L., Kostin, Y.V. and Kuznetsov, A.A. 1984. A field guide to birds of the USSR. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey.
Bibliography Fox, A.D. and Petersen, I.K. 2006. Assessing the degree of habitat loss to marine birds from the development of offshore wind farms. In: Boere, G., Galbraith, C. and Stroud, D. (ed.), Waterbirds around the world, pp. 801-804. The Stationary Office, Edinburgh, UK. Gorski, W., Jakuczun, B., Nitecki, C. and Petryna, A. 1977. Investigation of oil pollution on the Polish Baltic coast in 1974-1975. Przeglad Zoologiczny 21(1): 20-23. Gudmundsson, F. 1979. The past status and exploitation of the Myvatn waterfowl populations. Oikos 32(1-2): 232-249. HELCOM 2013. Species Information Sheet - Melanitta nigra (wintering). HELCOM Red List Bird Expert Group. Johnsgard, P.A. 1978. Ducks, geese and swans of the World. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln and London. Kear, J. 2005. Ducks, geese and swans volume 2: species accounts (Cairina to Mergus). Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. Larsen, J.K. and Laubek, B. 2005. Disturbance effects of high-speed ferries on wintering sea ducks. Wildfowl 55: 99-116. Madge, S. and Burn, H. 1988. Wildfowl. Christopher Helm, London. Melville, D.S. and Shortridge, K.F. 2006. Migratory waterbirds and avian influenza in the East Asian- Australasian Flyway with particular reference to the 2003-2004 H5N1 outbreak. In: Boere, G., Galbraith, C. and Stroud, D. (ed.), Waterbirds around the world, pp. 432-438. The Stationary Office, Edinburgh, UK. Nikolaeva, N.G., Spiridonov, V.A. and Krasnov, Y.V. 2006. Existing and proposed marine protected areas and their relevance for seabird conservation: a case study in the Barents Sea region. In: Boere, G., Galbraith, C. and Stroud, D. (ed.), Waterbirds around the world, pp. 743-749. The Stationary Office, Edinburgh, UK. Petersen, I.K. 2006. Revision of Danish EU Bird Directive SPAs in relation to the development of an offshore wind farm: a case study. In: Boere, G., Galbraith, C. and Stroud, D. (ed.), Waterbirds around the world, pp. 750-751. The Stationary Office, Edinburgh, UK. Scott, D.A. and Rose, P.M. 1996. Atlas of Anatidae populations in Africa and western Eurasia. Wetlands International, Wageningen, Netherlands. Snow, D.W. and Perrins, C.M. 1998. The Birds of the Western Palearctic vol. 1: Non-Passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford. Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) 2013. Common scoter [http://www.wwt.org.uk/conservation/savingwildlife/science-and-action/uk-species/common-scoter/] Map (see overleaf)