scoter

scoter
/skoh"teuhr/, n., pl. scoters, (esp. collectively) scoter.
any of the large diving ducks of the genus Melanitta, inhabiting northern parts of the Northern Hemisphere.
Also, scooter.
[1665-75; orig. uncert.]

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or sea coot

Any of three species (genus Melanitta) of diving duck that are mainly marine except during the breeding season.

The males are shiny black. The surf scoter (Melanitta perspicillata) breeds in the forests and tundra of Canada and Alaska and winters on seacoasts as far south as Florida and southern California. The white-winged, or velvet, scoter (M. deglandi, or fusca) and the black, or common, scoter (M. nigra) occur north of the equator nearly worldwide. All three feed mainly on marine animals such as clams.

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bird
also called  Sea Coot 

      (genus Melanitta), any of three species of sea duck of the family Anatidae. Within the divisions of true duck species, the scoter belongs in the diving duck group. Scoters are good swimmers and divers and are mainly marine except during the breeding season. The males are generally shiny black in colour. The surf scoter (Melanitta perspicillata) of North America breeds in the boreal forests and tundra of Canada and Alaska. It winters on coasts from Nova Scotia to Florida in the east and from the Aleutian Islands to southern California in the west. The white-winged, or velvet, scoter (M. deglandi, or fusca) is nearly circumpolar in distribution north of the Equator, as is the black, or common, scoter (M., or sometimes Oidemia, nigra). The black scoter is the least abundant in the New World. All three species of scoter feed mainly on marine animals such as clams; only about 10 percent of their diet is plant material. The three species may be seen feeding in mixed flocks.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Scoter — Sco ter, n. [Cf. Prov. E. scote to plow up.] (Zo[ o]l.) Any one of several species of northern sea ducks of the genus {Oidemia}. [1913 Webster] Note: The European scoters are {Oidemia nigra}, called also {black duck}, {black diver}, {surf duck};… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • scoter — [skōt′ər] n. pl. scoters or scoter [< ?] any of several large, dark colored sea ducks (genera Oidemia and Melanitta), found chiefly along the N coasts of Europe and North America …   English World dictionary

  • Scoter — For U.S. Navy ships named Scoter, see USS Scoter. Scoters Adult male White winged Scoter (Melanitta deglandi) Scientific classification Kingdom …   Wikipedia

  • scoter — noun (plural scoters or scoter) Etymology: origin unknown Date: circa 1674 any of a genus (Melanitta) of sea ducks of chiefly coastal Eurasia, Canada, and the United States that have males with chiefly black plumage …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • scoter — nuodėgulės statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas atitikmenys: lot. Melanitta angl. scoter rus. синьга, f; турпан, m pranc. macreuse, f ryšiai: platesnis terminas – dančiasnapiai siauresnis terminas – baltakaktė nuodėgulė siauresnis terminas –… …   Paukščių pavadinimų žodynas

  • scoter — noun /ˈskəʊtə/lang=en Any one of several species of northern sea ducks of the genera Oidemia and Melanitta. When I went birdwatching, I saw lots of scoters …   Wiktionary

  • scoter — n. (Zoology) large sea duck native of north coasts of the northern hemisphere (drake has black feathers with white spots and the female is brown) …   English contemporary dictionary

  • scoter — [ skəʊtə] noun (plural same or scoters) a northern diving duck that winters off the coast, the male of which has mainly black plumage. [Genus Melanitta: three species.] Origin C17: perh. an error for sooter (with ref. to its black plumage) …   English new terms dictionary

  • scoter — sco·ter …   English syllables

  • scoter — sco•ter [[t]ˈskoʊ tər[/t]] n. pl. ters, (esp. collectively) ter. orn any of the large diving ducks of the genus Melanitta, inhabiting N parts of the Northern Hemisphere • Etymology: 1665–75; orig. uncert …   From formal English to slang

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