Common Goldeneye––a visitor on whistling wings

At this time of year when most birds have left us for the winter, I enjoy spending time along rocky shorelines watching and photographing sea ducks that come in close to feed. It is especially exciting when a common goldeneye, a plucky duck that I seldom see at other times, drops in unexpectedly on whistling wings.
The common goldeneye is a compact, cold-hardy, diving duck that breeds in boreal forests around the circumpolar north, including the forested regions of Alaska, Canada and the northern Lower 48 states. They are sometimes called “whistlers” because their wings make a whistling sound in flight.
In this region, the common goldeneye, like the common loon and common merganser, is common in name only. A few are reported to breed in forested areas at the base of the Seward Peninsula, and at least as far west on the peninsula as the Kwiniuk River near Elim.
In the Nome area and further west, it is an infrequent but regular treat to see these handsome, energetic ducks passing through, most often during spring and fall migration.
In spring, small flocks of showy, fast flying black-and-white males can sometimes be seen passing by along the coast or feeding in Safety Sound. These flocks, comprised mostly of males, are likely nonbreeding goldeneyes or post-breeding males migrating to unknown molting areas, which are often north of the breeding grounds.
Common goldeneyes are one of last waterfowl species to head south in fall. In the last few years, I’ve watched a few hardy juveniles that have stopped off to dive and feed with the scoters, eiders and long-tailed ducks as late as November. These youngsters lack the eye-catching plumage and golden eyes of their elders, but their distinctive, large, triangular-shaped head readily sets them apart from the rest of the flock.
Common goldeneyes perform elaborate courtship displays to form and maintain pair bonds. Usually this happens in winter, and they arrive on their breeding grounds in pairs. In the Nome area we are unlikely to see these lively displays.
These ducks, like the common merganser, nest in tree cavities. Their nest sites are close to freshwater lakes, ponds or rivers that are surrounded by forests with trees large enough to provide hollows for nesting. Woodpeckers, wood rot and broken limbs may create natural cavities that the ducks occupy.
Hollows in live or dead coniferous or deciduous trees will do, usually five to 40 feet off the ground. Occasionally rock crevices or burrows are used, and these ducks will readily use nest boxes.
A good nest site is near water with plentiful aquatic invertebrate prey, preferably with little to no aquatic vegetation or fish. Fish would compete with the ducklings for invertebrates, and pike could eat them. Clear water, too, is important for visual hunting.
Females usually return to the same nest site year after year. If nest sites are scarce, hens may lay their eggs in the nest of another female, or even in the nest of another species of cavity-nesting duck.
She alone incubates the eight to eleven eggs, or more if another female has added eggs to her clutch, for about a month. Her mate leaves early in incubation on a molt migration to a safe, food rich place where he molts his flight feathers and is unable to fly for three to four weeks.
A day after hatch, the female calls to her brood from the base of their nest tree, and the downy black-and-white chicks jump and tumble to the ground. The hen leads her young to the water where they feed themselves, first by dabbling, then within a few days, by diving. She broods them when needed for warmth and protects them. However, mortality from weather and predation can be high for these ducklings.
Some females soon abandon their chicks, who then join another female’s brood. These combined broods are called “creches.” Hens often leave their broods before the young can fly and begin their own molt migration to a secluded place for their flightless period.
Common goldeneyes are diving ducks that hunt and feed underwater. During the breeding season they eat mostly aquatic insect larvae, supplemented with some plant material. In winter their diet includes crustaceans, mollusks, marine worms and small fish.
They usually feed close to shore in less than 15 feet of water, diving frequently and staying down for up to a minute. When diving, they hold their wings close to their bodies, spread their tail and propel themselves with their feet. They may catch many prey items during a single dive, usually swallowing them underwater. 
Common goldeneyes are aggressive and territorial ducks that often outcompete other ducks for feeding and nesting sites. I’ve watched them charge and chase long-tail ducks that seem only to want company, when they approach the goldeneye’s foraging area.
Most goldeneyes spend the winter in coastal bays along the Pacific and Atlantic coasts, but some overwinter across North America as far north as open water allows.
The common goldeneye is abundant and populations are believed to be fairly stable.
Another goldeneye species – the Barrow’s goldeneye – also occurs in Alaska, but is very rarely seen in this region.