Long-tailed Duck
(Clangula hyemalis)

Overview

Summary

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The Long-tailed Duck has a circumpolar distribution and, in North America, pairs breed at low densities in remote Arctic and Subarctic areas. During most of the year, birds are found primarily in coastal marine waters, often far offshore. Despite indications of a long-term decline since the 1970s, the Long-tailed Duck population appears to have stabilized in the early 1990s. However, the information available to estimate population trends for this species is limited. This species has been identified as a priority for conservation and/or stewardship in one or more Bird Conservation Region Strategies in Canada.

Designations

Population status

Distribution maps

• BirdLife International / NatureServe

Migration strategy, occurrence

Responsibility for conservation of world population

Conservation and management

The main management and conservation concerns pertaining to the Long-tailed Duck include: (1) the lack of an adequate annual survey on the breeding or wintering grounds; and (2) the risk of heavy metal contamination, either through the diet or oil spills, particularly on the wintering grounds and staging areas where the birds are concentrated (Sea Duck Joint Venture 2003). The Long-tailed Duck is not a widely hunted species in Canada and are generally considered poor table fare because of their strong taste. However, they are a significant species in the subsistence harvest in some northern communities. The size of the harvest by Aboriginal people is unknown.

Bird conservation region strategies

Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:

• conservation concerns (i.e., species vulnerable due to population size, distribution, population trend, abundance, or threats)
• stewardship responsibilities (i.e., species that typify the regional avifauna or have a large proportion of their range or population in the sub-region)
• management concerns (i.e., species that require ongoing management because of their socio-economic importance as game species, or because of their impacts on other species or habitats)
• other concerns (i.e., species deemed a priority by regional experts for other reasons than those listed above or because they are listed as species at risk or concern at the provincial level)

Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.

References

• Canadian Wildlife Service Waterfowl Committee. 2014. Population Status of Migratory Game Birds in Canada: November 2014. CWS Migratory Birds Regulatory Report Number 44. Canadian Wildlife Service Waterfowl Committee. 2014. Population Status of Migratory Game Birds in Canada: November 2014. CWS Migratory Birds Regulatory Report Number 44. (Link)
• Sea Duck Joint Venture. 2003. Long-tailed Duck (Clangula hyemalis). Sea Duck Information Series, Information Sheet #10 of 15. Sea Duck Joint Venture. 2003. Long-tailed Duck (Clangula hyemalis). Sea Duck Information Series, Information Sheet #10 of 15. (Link)