Bufflehead

Bucephala albeola

The bufflehead is a small, chunky, energetic diving duck. It varies in color and pattern depending on its sex:

• Male buffleheads are mostly white with a black back. They have a glossy, greenish-black head with a large white "bonnet" or patch on the back. In flight, they show a large white wing patch.
• Female buffleheads have a grayish-brown head, back and wings. Their chest is white, and they have a small white cheek spot and white patch on the wings.

Buffleheads grow to about 15 inches, with a wingspan of about 24 inches.

Where does the bufflehead live?

Buffleheads winter on the Bay's open waters and lakes, ponds and rivers in the Bay watershed.

• Small groups of buffleheads begin to arrive to the Bay in October, peaking in November.
• Between mid-April and May, buffleheads migrate back to their breeding grounds in Canada, Alaska and the northern continental United States.
• Buffleheads prefer waters that are 4 to 15 feet deep.

What does the bufflehead eat?

Buffleheads feed on a variety of plants and animals, including:

• Seeds
• Mollusks
• Small fish
• Crustaceans
• Bay grasses

What does the bufflehead sound like?

Male buffleheads make hoarse, rolling sounds, while the female's call is a harsh quack.

Where does the bufflehead nest and breed?

Buffleheads leave the Bay watershed in late spring for their northern breeding grounds.

• Bufflehead pairs nest in tree cavities that are formed by woodpeckers.
• During the breeding season, the female bufflehead lays one egg each morning for one to two weeks, usually laying a total of eight to 10 eggs.
• Once she begins the four-week incubation period, the male leaves the nest to spend the summer at a bufflehead molting ground.
• After the ducklings hatch, they take about seven to eight weeks to learn how to fly.
• The male bufflehead then reunites with the female and their ducklings.

Other facts about the bufflehead:

• Buffleheads are constantly moving, either swimming along the surface of the water or bobbing underneath in search of food.
• Unlike most other diving ducks, which patter across the water before taking off, buffleheads fly straight up from the water.