Female Hooded Mergansers (Male vs Female Identification)

Hooded Merganser (femme fatale) is the smallest merganser bred in North America. While the males of this species are easily identifiable by their striking black and white head and chest markings and jagged black beaks, the females are less distinct, without any vivid markings.

To learn more about the differences and how to identify female hooded mergansers, read on!

The female masked merganser is a small saw-billed water bird. In general, their plumage is somewhat pastel, with a grey-brown upper body and white underchest and belly. Their main distinguishing feature is the dense cinnamon buff crown.

Hooded mergansers are hollow nest builders, with females dominating in site selection and nest building. By the time hatching begins, the male merganser has abandoned the nest, leaving the female to raise her young alone.

Read on to learn more about the female hooded merganser’s appearance, courtship rituals, and breeding behavior.

Hooded Merganser female

How do you know if a hooded merganser is a male or a female?

Male masked mergansers have black heads topped with a bushy crested hair. They have a large, round white patch on each side of their head. They have bright yellow irises and black beaks. Females are predominantly grey-brown with white underparts and underparts. The eyes are brown and the beak is also tan.

Both male and female hooded mergansers have distinctive scalloped crests and serrated beaks, but the similarities end there.

Adult males and females have completely different plumage, reducing the possibility of confusion between the sexes. Males have striking zebra-like chest markings and black and white striped wings. Their flanks are a rich sorrel.

In eclipse plumage, the appearance of the male hooded merganser becomes more drab and subdued. They lose their striking color and become more difficult to distinguish from females, although they can be easily distinguished at close range because the irises of males are yellow and those of females are brown.

female hooded merganser

male hooded merganser

confused with non-breeding males

Female hooded mergansers can be confused with non-breeding males due to their similar plumage. Non-breeding males maintain dark beaks, and the yellow color of the male’s iris is a reliable way to distinguish the two. Females have orange beaks and dark irises.

What does a female hooded merganser look like?

The upper body of the female crested merganser is mainly taupe, the wings are dark brown, the breast is stone gray, the head is brownish gray, and the iris is reddish brown. Their under breasts and bellies are bright white.

They lack the black and white markings that are characteristic of the males of this species, but are effortlessly recognizable thanks to the orange-red crowns they can erect, giving them an instantly recognizable silhouette.

Their brown bill distinguishes them from other merganser species such as the red-breasted merganser and the common merganser, in which the female’s beak is red.

Close up of a swimming female hooded merganser

Are female hooded mergansers bigger than males?

Female crested mergansers are slightly smaller than males, between 40 and 46 cm (15.7 and 18.1 in), while males are between 43 and 49 cm (16.9 and 19.3 in).

A pair of hooded mergansers, female (background) and male (foreground)

behavioral difference

Like the males of the species, one of the most distinctive features of female hooded mergansers is their shaggy crest, which changes position depending on the situation.

By erecting their crests, their appearance becomes more intimidating to any threatening predator they encounter.

Male masked mergansers use their crests during courtship, with the fully erect crest used to attract the attention of pursued females. A group of males perform heads-up, head-shaking and wing-flapping displays for the benefit of lone females.

Of particular note is the ritualized “drinking” in which the male (with a completely flat crest) throws his head back, his beak nearly vertical. The female responds to her chosen mate by shaking her head or pumping.

A pair of hooded mergansers swimming on the water

call

Crested mergansers are generally a quiet species, and their calls are rarely heard outside of the breeding season.

During courtship, males are often more vocal than females, making frog-like croaks to attract mates.Female masked merganser responds with a hoarse voicemischief‘ sound.

Unique to the female hooded merganser is a tall and fast “grunt grunt‘ vocalization, used to call ducklings above the water, or as a warning call to repel predators that come too close to the nest.

Close up portrait of a female masked merganser

nesting and feeding

Hooded mergansers are cavity nesters and will use unattended nest boxes designed for wood ducks, as well as natural holes in trees or cavities formed by roots. The nesting site is chosen by the female without the assistance of the male.

Once a nesting cavity has been selected, the female alone prepares the spawning site. No additional material is brought into the cavity and a shallow nest bed is made from material already present in the cavity or box, culminating in the plucking of soft feathers from the female’s udder at the start of egg laying.

Males do not play an active role in the preparation of the nest or the subsequent egg hatching and rearing of the young. Once nested, the males leave their non-breeding grounds, where they moult and their distinctive breeding markings are temporarily replaced by a suite of pastel plumage, similar to the brownish-gray appearance of a female.

The female incubates the eggs and defends the nest alone, becoming increasingly protective of her nest as the hatch progresses. Behaviors include vocalizing and flapping their wings not far from the nest, which serves to distract the attention of any predators that might come close to spot their eggs.

Female hooded merganser inspecting a nest box

Can female mergansers raise offspring alone?

From the moment hatching begins, the female masked merganser has full responsibility for incubating the eggs and hatchlings. Once a nest has been selected and eggs laid, the males leave their non-breeding grounds.

Females will only leave their eggs unattended for short periods of time each day to forage for food, returning to hatching duties once they have eaten. It is not uncommon for females to lose up to 16% of their body weight during this time due to limited feeding opportunities.

During the first 24 hours after hatching, mergansers are initially hatched by females and taken to the water, where they acquire foraging and diving skills relatively quickly. At about 5 weeks, they are no longer dependent on the female for food.

Hooded merganser hen and her ducklings

What color is a female hooded merganser?

Female masked mergansers are predominantly dark brown-gray. They have a white patch that extends from the lower breast to the abdomen. Their wings are slightly darker than the rest of the body, with a lighter slate gray face.

The head of the female masked merganser has a bushy, scalloped crest that is a light orange-brown color.

Do female hooded mergansers bark?

Although the hooded merganser is a largely silent species, female calls can sometimes be heard.

During courtship, females may emit “mischief‘crying at a show with male suitors, and’grunt gruntMothers may use this call to call their ducklings, or to make defensive calls around their nests.