Description:

A rather large diving duck with a large, rounded dark head with large but not long grey bill. Larger and stockier than Tufted Duck, and lacking any sign of crest. Male has grey upperparts that contrast with black rear-end. Immature male is duller. Female has broad white face-patch, which is less extensive on juvenile/immature.

Distribution:

Vagrant during passage in the major waterways and lakes all across Gilgit-Baltistan. Landing in the region during cloudy/harsh weather, at lakes, marshes, rivers and streams with fringe vegetation up to 3500m, avoiding turbulent waters.

Behavior:

Feeds mostly by diving; also upends in shallow waters and dabbles on surface. Scaup spend most time sleeping at some sites, and both sleeping and feeding at others, with females foraging more than males. Omnivorous: molluscs major in diet; also insects, crustaceans, worms, small fish, roots, seeds and vegetative parts of aquatic plants, including sedges; also potatoes and bread.

Photo Gallery:

Range & Occurrence:

Resident Species

Summer Breeder

Winter Visitor

Passage Migrant

Distribution Map of Greater Scaup in Gilgit-Baltistan (Status: )

Seasonal Occurrence of Greater Scaup

Resources:

Birds of Pakistan: Helm Field Guides (R. Grimmett & T. Inskipp)
The Birds of Pakistan (T. J. Roberts)
Birds of the Indian Subcontinent (C. Inskipp, R. Grimmett & T. Inskipp)
Birds of South Asia: The Ripley Guide (P. Rasmussen & J. Anderton)
Birds of India: Collins Field Guide (N. Arlott)
Handbook of the Birds of India and Pakistan (S. Ali & S. D. Ripley)
Handbook of the Birds of the World (https://www.hbw.com)
The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World, 6th Edition
iNaturalist BoGB (inaturalist.org/projects/birds-of-gilgit-baltistan)
Birds of Gilgit-Baltistan (http://fb.me/birdsgb)

*Gallery images on this page are shared from flickr.com, and are copyrighted to their respective creators or owners.