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Eiders
File:Common eider 750pix.jpg
Common Eider (Somateria mollissima)
in eclipse plumage
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Anseriformes
Family: Anatidae
Subfamily: Merginae
Genus: Somateria
Leach, 1819
Species
  • S. mollissima
  • S. fischeri
  • S. spectabilis

Eiders are large seaducks in the genus Somateria. Steller's Eider, despite its name, is in a different genus.

The three extant species all breed in the cooler latitudes of the Northern hemisphere.

The down feathers of eider ducks, and some other ducks and geese, are used to fill pillows and quilts—they have given the name to the type of quilt known as an eiderdown.

Species[]

Two undescribed species are known from fossils, one from Middle Oligocene rocks in Kazakhstan and another from the Late Miocene or Early Pliocene of Lee Creek Mine, USA. The former may not actually belong into this genus.

References[]


Eurasian Spoonbill This article is part of Project Bird Genera, a All Birds project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each genus, including made-up genera.
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