Data Zone
Bellebaum, J., Larsson, K. and Kube, J. 2012. Research on Sea Ducks in the Baltic Sea. Gotland University.
BirdLife International. 2015. European Red List of Birds. Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, Luxembourg.
Bowman, T.D., Silverman, E.D., Gilliland, S.G. and Leirness, J.B. 2015. Status and trends of North American sea ducks: reinforcing the need for better monitoring. In: Savard, J.-P.L., Derksen, D.V., Esler, D. and Eadie, J.M. (eds), Ecology and conservation of North American sea ducks. Studies in Avian Biology (no. 46), pp. 1-28. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
Bregnballe, T.; Noer, H.; Christensen, T.K.; Clausen, P.; Asferg, T.; Fox, A.D.; Delany, S. 2006. Sustainable hunting of migratory waterbirds: the Danish approach. In: G. Boere, C. Galbraith and D. Stroud (eds), Waterbirds around the world, pp. 854-860. The Stationery Office, Edinburgh, U.K.
Burnham, K.K., Johnson, J.A., Konkel, B. and Burnham, J.L. 2012. Nesting Common Eider (Somateria mollissima) Population Quintuples in Northwest Greenland. Arctic 65(4): 456-464.
Camphuysen, C. J.; Berrevoets, C. M.; Cremers, H. J. W. M.; Dekinga, A.; Dekker, R.; Ens, B. J.; van der Have, T. M.; Kats, R. K. H.; Kuiken, T.; Leopold, M. F.; van der Meer, J.; Piersma, T. 2002. Mass mortality of common eiders (Somateria mollissima) in the Dutch Wadden Sea, winter 1999/2000: starvation in a commercially exploited wetland of international importance. Biological Conservation 106: 303-317.
Carboneras, C., Christie, D.A., Kirwan, G.M. & Sharpe, C.J. 2017. Common Eider (Somateria mollissima). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (ed.), Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive, Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.
Christensen, T.K. and Hounisen, J.P. 2014. Managing hunted populations through sex-specific season lengths: a case of the Common Eider in the Baltic-Wadden Sea flyway population. European Journal of Wildlife Research 60(5): 717-726.
D’Alba, L.; Monaghan, P.; Nager, R.G. 2010. Advances in laying date and increasing population size suggest positive responses to climate change in common eiders Somateria mollissima in Iceland. Ibis 152(1): 19-28.
del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A.; Sargatal, J. 1992. Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 1: Ostrich to Ducks. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain.
Descamps, S., Jenouvrier, S., Gilchrist, H.G. and Forbes, M.R. 2012. Avian cholera, a threat to the viability of an Arctic seabird colony? PLoS ONE 7(2): e29659.
Desholm, M., Christensen, T. K., Scheiffarth, G., Hario, M., Andersson, A., Ens, B., Camphysen, C.J., Nilsson, L., Waltho, C.M., Lorentsen, S.H., Kuresoo, A., Kats, R.K.H., Fleet, D.M., Fox, A.D. 2003. Status of the Baltic/Wadden Sea population of the Common Eider Somateria m. mollissima. WILDFOWL 53(167-204).
Ekroos, J., Fox, A.D., Christensen, T.K., Petersen, I.K., Kilpi, M., Jónsson, J.E., Green, M., Laursen, K., Cervencl, A., de Boer, P., Nilsson, L., Meissner, W., Garthe, S. and Öst, M. 2012. Declines amongst breeding Eider Somateria mollissima numbers in the Baltic/Wadden Sea flyway. Ornis Fennica 89: 81-90.
Ens, B. J. 2006. The conflict between shellfisheries and migratory waterbirds in the Dutch Wadden Sea. In: Boere, G.; Galbraith, C., Stroud, D. (ed.), Waterbirds around the world, pp. 806-811. The Stationary Office, Edinburgh, UK.
Flint, V.E.; Boehme, R.L.; Kostin, Y.V.; Kuznetsov, A.A. 1984. A field guide to birds of the USSR. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey.
HELCOM. 2013. Species Information Sheet; Somateria mollissima. HELCOM Red List Bird Expert Group.
Hollmén, T. 2002. Biomarkers of health and disease in Common Eiders Somateria mollissima in Finland. Dept. Basic Veterinary Sciences, Helsinki University.
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.
Laursen, K. & Møller, A. P. 2014. Long-term changes in nutrients and mussel stocks are related to numbers of breeding eiders Somateria mollissimaat a large Baltic colony. PLoS ONE 9: e95851.
Laursen, K. and Møller, A. P. 2016. Your tools disappear when you stop eating: phenotypic variation in gizzard mass of eiders. Journal of Zoology 299: 213–220.
Lehikoinen, A., Öst, M., Hollmén, T. & Kilpi, M. 2008. Does sex-specific duckling mortality contribute to male bias in adult Common Eiders? Condor 110(3): 574-578.
Madge, S.; Burn, H. 1988. Wildfowl. Christopher Helm, London.
Merkel, F.R. 2010. Evidence of recent population recovery in Common Eiders breeding in western Greenland. J. Wildl. Manag. 74(8): 1869-1874.
Nagy, S., Flink, S. and Langendoen, T. 2014. Waterbird trends 1988-2012: Results of trend analyses of data from the International Waterbird Census in the African-Eurasian Flyway. Wetlands International, Ede.
Petersen, M.R., Byrd, G.V., Sonsthagen, S.A. & Sexson, M.G. 2015. Re-colonization by common eiders Somateria mollissima in the Aleutian Archipelago following removal of introduced arctic foxes Vulpes lagopus. Journal of Avian Biology 46(5): 538–549.
Ross, B. P., & Furness, R. W. 2000. Minimising the impact of eider ducks on mussel farming. University of Glasgow in association with Association of Scottish Shellfish Growers and Scottish Natural Heritage.
Scott, D. A.; Rose, P. M. 1996. Atlas of Anatidae populations in Africa and western Eurasia. Wetlands International, Wageningen, Netherlands.
Skov, H; Heinänen, S.; Žydelis, R.; Bellebaum, J.; Bzoma, S.; Dagys, M.; Durinck, J.; Garthe, S.; Grishanov, G.; Hario, M.; Kieckbusch, J.J.; Kube, J.; Kuresoo, A.; Larsson, K.; Luigujoe, L.; Meissner, W.; Nehls, H.W.; Nilsson, L.; Petersen, I.K.; Roos, M.M.; Pihl, S.; Sonntag, N.; Stock, A.; Stipniece, A.; Wahl, J. 2011. Waterbird Populations and Pressures in the Baltic Sea. Nordic Council of Ministers, Copenhagen.
Snow, D.W.; Perrins, C.M. 1998. The Birds of the Western Palearctic, Volume 1: Non-Passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Tjørnløv, R.S., Humaidan, J. and Frederiksen, M. 2013. Impacts of avian cholera on survival of Common Eiders Somateria mollissima in a Danish colony. Bird Study 60(3): 321-326.
Waltho, C. and Coulson, J. 2015. The common eider. – T & AD Poyser.
Wetlands International. 2012. Waterbird Population Estimates: Fifth Edition. Summary Report. Edited by Taej Mundkur and Szabolcs Nagy. Wetlands International, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
Žydelis, R.; Small, C.; French, G. 2013. The incidental catch of seabirds in gillnet fisheries: A global review. Biological Conservation 162: 76-88.
IUCN SSC Duck Specialist Group
IUCN SSC Threatened Waterfowl Specialist Group
Detailed species account from European Red List of Birds (BirdLife International 2015)
Search for photos and videos, and hear sounds of this species from the Macaulay Library
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Common Eider Somateria mollissima. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/common-eider-somateria-mollissima on 23/11/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 23/11/2024.