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Great Northern Diver Gavia immer   [Brünnich, 1764]
Other Names Trends & Distribution Breeding & Survival Biometrics Books & Links
Order: Gaviiformes Family: Gaviidae
BTO Codes: ND , GRNDI EURING No: 40
Number in Britain: 2800 birds (Winter)
Conservation Status:
UK: AMBER
European: Not a species of concern
Global: Least Concern
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Status in UK: (A)  Scarce Breeder, Winter Visitor
Subspecies: Monotypic
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Length: 80 cm Wingspan: 137 cm Weight: M/F: 4 kg    
Scientific name from: L.: Gavia, a seabird described by Pliny and Icelandic: himbrimi=surf-roarer
World Distribution: BREEDS: Greenland, Iceland, n Scotland, n North America, WINTERS: south to nw Africa, s Europe and s US
Habitat: Lakes, ponds & rivers
Diet: Mostly fish (to 28cm) also large invertebrates, amphibians
TitBit: The eerie, haunting cry of the diver gave rise to their original name - the Loon, which now used by Americans  
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Population and Distribution
Population Trend: No population trend available
Distribution: No distribution maps available
British Population Size:
    Winter: 2500 to 3000 individuals in 1974-84     Note: Best estimate
    First Record: 1634
    First Breeding Record: Wester Ross 1970
Habitat Occupancy (in the Breeding Season):
    No habitat data from BBS
European Population Size:
    Summer: 700 to 2 thousand pairs
Population Assesment from Birds in Europe
Distribution in Europe
Listed on the Appendices/Schedules of: WCA(I), Bern(II), Bonn(II*)
Survey Results: BirdTrack
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Breeding and Survival
Egg Size: 90 x 58 mm Egg Weight: 167.0 g (of which 11 % is shell)
Number of Nest Records: 0
Clutch Size: 2 eggs
Incubation: 24 - 25 days by the: Male + Female
Fledging: 70 - 77 days as: Precocial, downy
First Clutches Laid: Unavailable
Number of Broods: 1

Number Ringed: 0
Adult Survival: No data Juvenile Survival: No data
Age at First Breeding: Typical Lifespan: No data
Maximum Recorded Age: Too few birds ringed
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Biometrics
Ring Size: Check with Ringing Unit
Wing Length Adult: Insufficient Data.
Juvenile: Insufficient Data.
Male: Insufficient Data
Female: Insufficient Data
Weight Adult: Insufficient Data.
Juvenile: Insufficient Data.
Male: Insufficient Data
Female: Insufficient Data
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Other Names
Common Loon
Gaelic: Muir-bhuachaille Welsh: Trochydd Mawr
Danish: Islom Dutch: IJsduiker
Finnish: Amerikanjääkuikka French: Plongeon imbrin
German: Eistaucher Hungarian: Jeges búvár
Icelandic: Himbrimi Irish: Lóma Mór
Italian: Strolaga maggiore Norwegian: Islom
Polish: Nur lodowiec (lodowiec) Portuguese: Mobęlha-grande
Spanish: Colimbo grande Swedish: Islom
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For More Information...
Books and Monographs:
   Rankin, N. 1947 The haunts of British divers Collins, London [998 RAN]
See Also:
All About Birds (Cornell Lab of Ornithology)
Gough, G.A. et al. (1998) Patuxent Bird Identification Infocenter
Wikipedia entry
State of the Nations Birds by Chris Mead
Recent sightings and information from BirdGuides.com
Selected scientific papers published 1980-2005
Find more papers on Google Scholar
Find more papers on Scirus

BTO blue divider
BirdWeb logo, click to go to BirdWeb BirdFacts home | BTO Home
Email: birdfacts@bto.org

These data should be cited as:
Robinson, R.A. (2005) BirdFacts: profiles of birds occurring in Britain & Ireland (v1.21, Jun 2008). BTO Research Report 407, BTO, Thetford (http://www.bto.org/birdfacts)

 

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