Home/Species/ Bufflehead

Bucephala albeola

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Bufflehead

G5Secure Found in 162 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →

G5SecureGlobal Rank

Least concernIUCN

Identity

Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.104714

Element CodeABNJB18030

Record TypeSPECIES

ClassificationSpecies

Classification StatusStandard

Name CategoryVertebrate Animal

IUCNLeast concern

Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

KingdomAnimalia

PhylumCraniata

ClassAves

OrderAnseriformes

FamilyAnatidae

GenusBucephala

Other Common Names

bufflehead (EN) Pato Monja (ES) Petit garrot (FR)

Concept Reference

American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in The Auk]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.

Conservation Status

Rank MethodExpertise without calculation

Review Date2016-04-06

Change Date1996-11-21

Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)

Range Extent Comments

BREEDING: central Alaska, Mackenzie Delta, northern Prairie Provinces, northern Ontario, south to northern Washington, northern Montana; locally south to the mountains of Oregon, northern California, and northern Colorado (Andrews and Righter 1992). NON-BREEDING: Aleutians, Alaska Peninsula, Great Lakes, New Brunswick and Newfoundland, south to Baja California, mainland Mexico, Gulf Coast, Florida; occasionally in Hawaii. The most abundant wintering populations include those around Vancouver Island, along the Atlantic coast from the Bay of Fundy to Chesapeake Bay, and in northern California-southern Oregon, Mississippi, eastern New Mexico (Root 1988).

Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

BREEDING: Lakes, ponds, rivers and seacoasts (AOU 1983). Breeds in tree cavities in mixed coniferous-deciduous woodland near lakes and ponds (AOU 1983). Usually nests in natural tree cavities, or abandoned flicker holes. Females often nest in same site in successive years. NON-BREEDING: wintering on sheltered bays and estuaries as well as open freshwater situations (AOU 1983).

Ecology

Usually seen in small groups of twos or threes. Female strongly defends brood territory. In British Columbia, breeding density not limited by nest sites but rather by territorial behavior (Gauthier and Smith 1987); also, may be excluded from some ponds at high Barrow's goldeneye densities (Savard et al. 1991).

Reproduction

Breeding begins mid-May in south to early June in north (Harrison 1978). Clutch size 6-11 (avg. 7-9). Incubation 28-33 days, by female (Terres 1980). In British Columbia, mean hatching date is mid- to late June (Savard et al. 1991). Young tended by female, fly 50-55 days after hatching. First breeds at 2 yr.

Terrestrial Habitats

Forest - HardwoodForest - ConiferForest - MixedWoodland - HardwoodWoodland - ConiferWoodland - Mixed

Palustrine Habitats

Riparian

Other Nations (2)

CanadaN5B,N5N

Province	Rank	Native
Manitoba	S4B	Yes
Alberta	S5B	Yes
Labrador	S2B	Yes
Nova Scotia	S4N,SUM	Yes
Prince Edward Island	SUM	Yes
New Brunswick	S3N	Yes
British Columbia	S5B,SNRN	Yes
Northwest Territories	S5	Yes
Ontario	S5	Yes
Island of Newfoundland	S1B,S1N,SUM	Yes
Quebec	S4B	Yes
Yukon Territory	S4B	Yes
Saskatchewan	S5B	Yes

United StatesN5B,N5N

Province	Rank	Native
Ohio	SNRN	Yes
Alaska	S5B,S5N	Yes
Arizona	S5N	Yes
California	SNR	Yes
South Dakota	S1B,S2N	Yes
Wisconsin	SNA	Yes
Indiana	S4N	Yes
Navajo Nation	S4N	Yes
Tennessee	S5N	Yes
Kentucky	S3N	Yes
Oregon	S2B,S5N	Yes
Iowa	S3N	Yes
Massachusetts	S5N	Yes
Nevada	S4N	Yes
Maryland	S5N	Yes
New Hampshire	SNA	Yes
Utah	S3N	Yes
District of Columbia	S1N	Yes
New Mexico	S5N	Yes
Illinois	SNA	Yes
Florida	SNRN	Yes
Wyoming	S2B	Yes
Pennsylvania	S4N	Yes
South Carolina	S5N	Yes
Arkansas	S4N	Yes
Delaware	S4N	Yes
Minnesota	SNRB	Yes
Oklahoma	SNRN	Yes
Michigan	SNRN	Yes
Georgia	S5	Yes
North Carolina	S5N	Yes
Missouri	SNRN	Yes
Rhode Island	SNA	Yes
West Virginia	S4N	Yes
Kansas	SNA	Yes
Idaho	S3N,S3B	Yes
Virginia	SNRN	Yes
Nebraska	SNRN	Yes
Colorado	S1B	Yes
Connecticut	SNA	Yes
New York	SNRN	Yes
Alabama	S4N	Yes
Mississippi	S4N	Yes
North Dakota	S4	Yes
New Jersey	SNRN	Yes
Washington	S4B,S4N	Yes
Louisiana	S4N	Yes
Maine	S5N	Yes
Montana	S5B	Yes
Vermont	S4N	Yes
Texas	S5N	Yes

Roadless Areas (162)

Alaska (33)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bay of Pillars	Tongass National Forest	27,492
Behm Islands	Tongass National Forest	4,777
Chilkat-West Lynn Canal	Tongass National Forest	199,772
Chugach-12	Chugach National Forest	8,116
Chugach-13	Chugach National Forest	13,337
College Fiord	Chugach National Forest	1,130,818
Copper River Wetlands	Chugach National Forest	85,972
Douglas Island	Tongass National Forest	28,065
Fidalgo-Gravina	Chugach National Forest	257,968
Gravina	Tongass National Forest	37,381
Hoonah Sound	Tongass National Forest	79,764
Johnson Pass	Chugach National Forest	152,508
Juneau Urban	Tongass National Forest	101,581
Juneau-Skagway Icefield	Tongass National Forest	1,187,268
Karta	Tongass National Forest	52,117
Kenai Lake	Chugach National Forest	213,172
Kenai Mountains	Chugach National Forest	306,600
Madan	Tongass National Forest	68,553
Mansfield Peninsula	Tongass National Forest	54,991
North Baranof	Tongass National Forest	314,089
North Revilla	Tongass National Forest	215,430
North Wrangell	Tongass National Forest	8,091
Outer Islands	Tongass National Forest	99,862
Port Alexander	Tongass National Forest	120,681
Redoubt	Tongass National Forest	68,347
Resurrection	Chugach National Forest	224,615
Revilla	Tongass National Forest	29,298
Rhine	Tongass National Forest	23,010
Roaded Donut	Chugach National Forest	968
Sheridan Glacier	Chugach National Forest	224,683
Sitka Urban	Tongass National Forest	112,003
South Kruzof	Tongass National Forest	55,193
Taku-Snettisham	Tongass National Forest	664,928

Arizona (2)

Area	Forest	Acres
Black Cross	Tonto National Forest	5,966
Goldfield	Tonto National Forest	15,257

California (44)

Area	Forest	Acres
Barney Riley	Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest	8,083
Bear Mountain	Los Padres National Forest	913
Bell Meadow	Stanislaus National Forest	7,968
Bucks Lake	Plumas National Forest	680
Cajon	San Bernardino National Forest	7,548
Caples Creek	Eldorado National Forest	17,854
Carson - Iceberg	Stanislaus National Forest	56,430
Castle Peak	Tahoe National Forest	14,974
Chips Creek	Lassen National Forest	29,089
City Creek	San Bernardino National Forest	9,997
Dardanelles	Eldorado National Forest	8,110
Deep Creek	San Bernardino National Forest	23,869
Devil's Gate (CA)	Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest	9,946
East Yuba	Tahoe National Forest	17,968
Fish Canyon	Angeles National Forest	29,886
Glass Mountain	Inyo National Forest	52,867
Granite Chief	Tahoe National Forest	6,546
Greenhorn Creek	Sequoia National Forest	28,226
Grouse Lakes	Tahoe National Forest	19,085
Heart Lake	Lassen National Forest	9,349
Hixon Flat	San Bernardino National Forest	8,095
Horse Creek Ridge	San Bernardino National Forest	8,969
Lakes Basin	Tahoe National Forest	557
Magic Mountain	Angeles National Forest	15,542
Malduce Buckhorn	Los Padres National Forest	14,177
Middle Fork	Plumas National Forest	29,278
Middle Yuba	Tahoe National Forest	7,379
Mt. Jackson	Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest	20,721
Mystic (CA)	Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest	836
Nordhoff	Los Padres National Forest	12,031
North Fork American River	Tahoe National Forest	38,495
Orleans Mtn. B	Six Rivers National Forest	17,183
Pyramid	Eldorado National Forest	24,347
Raymond Peak	Stanislaus National Forest	3,646
Raymond Peak	Eldorado National Forest	2,518
Red Mountain	Angeles National Forest	8,034
Rouse Hill	San Bernardino National Forest	13,745
Salt Creek	Angeles National Forest	11,022
Sespe - Frazier	Los Padres National Forest	106,910
Timbered Crater	Lassen National Forest	4,096
Tragedy - Elephants Back	Eldorado National Forest	20,866
Trail Lake	Lassen National Forest	1,124
Tule	Angeles National Forest	9,861
Waterhouse	Stanislaus National Forest	4,394

Colorado (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Hermosa	San Juan NF	148,103

Georgia (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Turner Creek	Chattahoochee National Forest	1,495

Idaho (6)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bear Creek	Caribou-Targhee National Forest	118,582
Bighorn - Weitas	Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest	254,845
Hoodoo	Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest	153,868
Needles	Payette National Forest	131,279
Palisades	Caribou-Targhee National Forest	122,002
Peace Rock	Boise National Forest	191,734

Montana (15)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bear - Marshall - Scapegoat - Swan	Lewis and Clark National Forest	344,022
Bear - Marshall - Scapegoat - Swan	Lolo National Forest	118,485
Bear - Marshall - Scapegoat - Swan	Helena National Forest	51,360
Bmss Ra 1485	Flathead National Forest	334,275
Buckhorn Ridge (MT)	Kootenai National Forest	34,716
Cabin Creek Wildlife Management Area Ocd	Gallatin National Forest	35,048
Cabinet Face East #671	Kootenai National Forest	50,326
Cube Iron - Silcox	Lolo National Forest	36,998
Freezeout Mountain	Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest	97,305
Lionhead	Gallatin National Forest	33,549
Madison	Gallatin National Forest	127,859
North Siegel	Lolo National Forest	9,208
Scotchman Peaks (MT)	Kootenai National Forest	53,909
Selway - Bitterroot (01067)	Bitterroot National Forest	114,953
Silver King	Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest	64,289

Nevada (6)

Area	Forest	Acres
Antelope - West 1	Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest	8,642
Mystic (NV)	Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest	5,644
Rose - Dutch Louie	Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest	363
Rose - Evans	Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest	4,782
Rose - Hunter Lk No	Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest	149
Table Mtn. - East	Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest	87,789

New Mexico (3)

Area	Forest	Acres
Arroyo de los Frijoles	Santa Fe National Forest	5,277
Contiguous To Black & Aldo Leopold Wilderness	Gila National Forest	111,883
Meadow Creek	Gila National Forest	34,167

Oregon (17)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bearwallows	Deschutes National Forest	7,317
Hellhole	Umatilla National Forest	65,679
Homestead	Wallowa-Whitman National Forest	5,817
Hurricane Creek	Wallowa-Whitman National Forest	1,606
Maiden Peak	Deschutes National Forest	26,432
Maiden Peak	Willamette National Forest	9,627
Mt. Jefferson	Deschutes National Forest	2,282
Mt. Bailey	Umpqua National Forest	18,401
Sherwood	Umpqua National Forest	2,449
Sky Lakes A	Winema National Forest	3,940
Tahkenitch	Siuslaw National Forest	5,799
Tenmile	Siuslaw National Forest	10,818
Umpqua Spit	Siuslaw National Forest	2,090
Waldo	Deschutes National Forest	4,973
Waldo - Fuji	Willamette National Forest	15,273
West - South Bachelor	Deschutes National Forest	25,994
Woahink	Siuslaw National Forest	5,309

South Dakota (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Indian Creek	Buffalo Gap National Grassland	24,666

Tennessee (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Flint Mill Gap	Cherokee National Forest	9,494

Texas (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Big Creek	National Forests in Texas	1,447

Utah (7)

Area	Forest	Acres
0401011	Ashley National Forest	30,062
Cottonwood	Dixie National Forest	6,754
Moody Wash	Dixie National Forest	31,835
Oak Creek	Fishlake National Forest	54,053
Pine Valley Mountains	Dixie National Forest	57,673
Rock Canyon	Dixie National Forest	16,457
Wellsville	Wasatch-Cache National Forest	1,717

Vermont (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bread Loaf	Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests	1,768

Virginia (4)

Area	Forest	Acres
Adams Peak	George Washington National Forest	7,135
Bear Creek	Jefferson National Forest	18,274
Little Alleghany	George Washington National Forest	10,215
Mill Mountain	George Washington National Forest	10,840

Washington (12)

Area	Forest	Acres
Blue Slide	Wenatchee National Forest	17,505
Chelan	Wenatchee National Forest	74,650
Eagle Rock	Mt Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest	34,064
Entiat	Wenatchee National Forest	72,617
Goat Rocks Adj	Wenatchee National Forest	6,108
Grassy Top	Idaho Panhandle National Forests	13,485
Grassy Top	Colville National Forest	10,302
Jupiter Ridge	Olympic National Forest	10,148
Rock Creek	Wenatchee National Forest	32,239
Slide Ridge	Wenatchee National Forest	11,430
Taneum	Wenatchee National Forest	26,140
Thorp Mtn.	Wenatchee National Forest	22,717

West Virginia (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Middle Mountain	Monongahela National Forest	19,020

Wyoming (6)

Area	Forest	Acres
Gros Ventre Mountains	Bridger-Teton National Forest	106,418
Palisades	Targhee National Forest	1,121
Teton Corridor Trailheads	Bridger-Teton National Forest	286
West Slope Tetons	Targhee National Forest	47,448
West Slope Winds	Bridger-Teton National Forest	143,252
Wilderness Study Area	Targhee National Forest	51,961

References (24)

American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1983. Check-list of North American Birds, 6th edition. Allen Press, Inc., Lawrence, Kansas. 877 pp.
American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in <i>The Auk</i>]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.
Andrews, R., and R. Righter. 1992. Colorado birds: a reference to their distribution and habitat. Denver Museum Natural History xxxviii + 442 pp.
Bellrose, F.C. 1976. Ducks, geese and swans of North America. Stackpole Books, Harrisburg, PA.
Bellrose, F. C. 1980. Ducks, geese and swans of North America. 3rd edition. Stackpole Books, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. 540 pp.
BirdLife International. 2004b. Threatened birds of the world 2004. CD ROM. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK.
Eadie, J. M., L.-P. L. Savard, and M. L. Mallory. 2000 Barrow's Goldeneye (BUCEPHALA ISLANDICA). No. 548 IN A. Poole and F. Gill, editors, The birds of North America. The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA. 32pp.
Erskine, A. 1971. Buffleheads. Ottawa. 240 pp.
Gauthier, G. 1988. Factors affecting nest-box use by buffleheads and other cavity-nesting birds. Wildl. Soc. Bull. 16:132-141.
Gauthier, G., and J. N. M. Smith. 1987. Territorial behaviour, nest-site availability, and breeding density in buffleheads. J. Anim. Ecol. 56:171-184.
Grand, J.B., and P.L. Flint. 1997. Productivity of nesting Spectacled Eiders on the lower Kashunuk River, Alaska. Condor 100:926-932.
Harrison, C. 1978. A Field Guide to the Nests, Eggs and Nestlings of North American Birds. Collins, Cleveland, Ohio.
Howell, S. N. G., and S. Webb. 1995. A guide to the birds of Mexico and northern Central America. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK.
Parker III, T. A., D. F. Stotz, and J. W. Fitzpatrick. 1996. Ecological and distributional databases for neotropical birds. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Poole, A. F. and F. B. Gill. 1992. The birds of North America. The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. and The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA.
Raffaele, H., J. Wiley, O. Garrido, A. Keith, and J. Raffaele. 1998. A guide to the birds of the West Indies. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ. 511 pp.
Reed, A. 1975. Migration, homing, and mortality of breeding female eiders SOMATERIA MOLLISSIMA DRESSERI of the St. Lawrence estuary, Quebec. Ornis Scand. 6:41-47.
Root, T. 1988. Atlas of wintering North American birds: An analysis of Christmas Bird Count data. University of Chicago Press. 336 pp.
Savard, J.-P. L., G. E. J. Smith, and J. N. M. Smith. 1991. Duckling mortality in Barrow's goldeneye and bufflehead broods. Auk 108:568-577.
Sibley, D. A. 2000a. The Sibley guide to birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York.
Swennen, C. 1990. Dispersal and migratory movements of eiders SOMATERIA MOLLISSIMA breeding in the Netherlands. Ornis Scand. 21:17-27.
Terres, J. K. 1980. The Audubon Society encyclopedia of North American birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York.
van de Wetering, D. 1997. Moult characteristics and habitat selection of post-breeding male Barrow's Goldeneye (BUCEPHALA ISLANDICA) in northern Yukon. Technical Report Series No. 296, Canadian Wildlife Service, Quebec Region.
Wakeley, J. S., and H. L. Mendall. 1976. Migrational homing and survival of adult female eiders in Maine. Journal of Wildlife Management 40:15-21.