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Hooded Merganser
Ducks, Geese & Swans · Short-distance migrant

Hooded Merganser

Masked Diver, Hooded Sheldrake, Sawbill · Lophodytes cucullatus

Least Concern40–49 cm · 540–935 g

By the Birdfact teamChecked byNathan Cope

With its punk-rock crest and piercing yellow eyes, this small diving duck turns heads on lakes and ponds across North America.
On this page12 sections
  1. How to recognise it
  2. Its size
  3. Its song and calls
  4. When and where to see it
  5. What it eats
  6. Nesting and breeding
  7. Behaviour
  8. Conservation
  9. Similar birds
  10. More photos
  11. Quick facts
  12. Sources

How to recognise it

The Hooded Merganser is a striking duck with a distinctive, fan-shaped crest. Males display a black and white crest, chestnut flanks, and a black back. Their white breast is marked with two black bars.

Females are more subdued, with a cinnamon-colored crest and greyish-brown body. Both sexes have a thin, serrated bill and golden-yellow eyes, which turn bright yellow in breeding males.

Its size

Adults
Length
40–49 cm
Wingspan
61–66 cm
Weight
540–935 g

Its song and calls

Hooded Mergansers are generally quiet but become more vocal during breeding season. Males produce a low, rolling, frog-like croak, often described as 'croo-croo-crrrooo'. Females make a hoarse, guttural 'gak-gak-gak' call, particularly when disturbed or leading young.

When and where to see it

OctoberArriving

Arriving in 2 placesLast month in 2 places

Most recorded in October

  1. 1. Perthshire and Kinrossunder 0.1%
  2. 2. Rutlandunder 0.1%
  3. 3. Norfolkunder 0.1%
  4. 4. Londonunder 0.1%
  5. 5. Suffolkunder 0.1%

Each dot is a county, state or province: the bigger and darker, the larger the bird’s share of that place’s bird records that month. Grey dots: no regular records. The ringed point is the centre of the bird’s records this month; the arrow shows how it moved since last month, and the dashed loop its path through the year. “Arrivals” colours places where it becomes regular this month (orange) or is in its last regular month (grey). GBIF eBird Observation Dataset, 2019–2024. Map data: Natural Earth, US Census Bureau; place centres © OpenStreetMap contributors.

In your area

See when the Hooded Merganser is recorded in your county, state or province.

or

How often the Hooded Merganser turns up in the UK, the United States and Canada through the year, from birdwatchers' records.

United Kingdom

Winter visitor · regularly Oct–May · most records in May

United States

Winter visitor · all year · most records in January

Canada

Winter visitor · all year · most records in November

Regularly recordedOccasionalBar height: share of all bird records that month
Show as a table
MonthUnited KingdomUnited StatesCanada
January0.001% (regular)0.59% (regular)0.61% (regular)
February<0.001% (regular)0.48% (regular)0.50% (regular)
March<0.001% (regular)0.46% (regular)0.78% (regular)
April<0.001% (regular)0.17% (regular)0.54% (regular)
May0.002% (regular)0.065% (regular)0.15% (regular)
June<0.001%0.053% (regular)0.11% (regular)
July<0.001%0.051% (regular)0.14% (regular)
August<0.001%0.056% (regular)0.23% (regular)
September<0.001%0.048% (regular)0.28% (regular)
October<0.001% (regular)0.099% (regular)0.55% (regular)
November<0.001%0.50% (regular)1.2% (regular)
December0.001% (regular)0.57% (regular)0.75% (regular)

Recorded regularly in

Worldwide: recorded regularly in 10 countries

Countries where it was recorded in at least 3 of the 6 years 2019–2024. Linked countries have their own bird list.

Europe (4)
North America (6)

Data: EOD – eBird Observation Dataset (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), accessed via GBIF.org, CC BY 4.0. Records from 2019–2024, aggregated and filtered by Birdfact. How these lists are made

Download citations (7)

Tips for seeing it

  • Look for Hooded Mergansers in wooded swamps and quiet, forested ponds
  • Listen for their distinctive, frog-like croaking call during breeding season
  • Observe their diving behavior, as they frequently submerge to hunt for food
  • In North America, watch for them in winter along coastal areas and unfrozen inland waters

What it eats

Hooded Mergansers primarily feed on small fish, aquatic insects, and crustaceans. They use their serrated bills to grip slippery prey, diving underwater and swimming with their eyes open to locate food. Occasionally, they also consume plant material, especially during breeding season.

Nesting and breeding

Breeding season for Hooded Mergansers typically begins in late winter or early spring. Males perform elaborate courtship displays to attract females, including head-pumping and crest-raising.

Females select nest sites in tree cavities or nest boxes, often near water. They lay 7-15 cream-colored eggs and line the nest with down. Nests are sometimes shared with other female mergansers or wood ducks.

Incubation lasts about 30 days, performed solely by the female. Ducklings leave the nest within 24 hours of hatching, jumping from heights of up to 50 feet to reach water.

Behaviour

Hooded Mergansers are agile swimmers and divers, using their keen eyesight to locate prey underwater. They often shake their crests when alarmed or during courtship displays.

These ducks are generally quiet but become more vocal during breeding season, especially when performing elaborate courtship rituals.

Conservation

While currently listed as Least Concern, Hooded Mergansers face threats from habitat loss, particularly the destruction of mature forests near wetlands. Conservation efforts focus on protecting nesting habitats and maintaining water quality in their aquatic environments.

Similar birds

Often mistaken for

More photos

7 photos

Quick facts

Length
40–49 cm
Wingspan
61–66 cm
Weight
540–935 g
Lifespan
10–12 years
Family
Ducks, Geese & Swans
Migration
Short-distance migrant
Global status (IUCN)
Least Concern
World population
1,100,000 mature individuals
Population trend
Population slowly increasing overall, but some local declines
Also called
Masked Diver, Hooded Sheldrake, Sawbill
Scientific name
Lophodytes cucullatus

Sources

3
  1. 1BirdLife International. 2021. Lophodytes cucullatus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: e.T22680472A137932133. Source (opens in a new tab)
  2. 2Meehan et al. 2018; Partners in Flight 2020; Wetlands International 2020
  3. 3Partners in Flight (2020) Source (opens in a new tab)
Spotted a mistake?Tell usHow we write and checkBy the Birdfact team · Updated

Checked by

Nathan Cope, founder and editor

Nathan founded Birdfact and leads its writers and contributors in the UK, the US and Canada. He has watched and studied birds for more than ten years, and checks every article and species guide before it’s published.

How we write and checkAbout Nathan