King Eider Patch

#13 King Eider

The male King Eider is one of the most strikingly-patterned ducks in the world. King Eiders breed in the high Arctic in summer, and spend their winters on open ocean, mostly at the edge of sea ice or off rocky coasts, occasionally as far south as the Mid-Atlantic states. Their spring migration past northern Alaska is an incredible phenomenon: 360,000 King Eiders were once counted in 10 hours.