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  • Red-throated diver

Red-throated diver

Red-throated diver (summer plumage)
Red-throated diver (summer plumage)
Red-throated diver (winter plumage)
Red-throated diver (winter plumage)
  • Scientific name: Gavia stellata
  • Bird family: Divers
  • UK conservation status: Green
  • Protected by The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981

Red throated diver call audio

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Patrik Aberg, xeno-canto

Key information

The smallest of the UK's divers, its grey-brown plumage and up-tilted bill readily distinguish it from the other species. In summer it has a distinctive red throat. They usually jump up to dive and can stay underwater for a minute and a half. They are very ungainly on land, only coming ashore to breed. They are listed as a Schedule 1 species under The Wildlife and Countryside Act.

What they eat:

Fish.

Measurements:

Length:
53-69cm
Wingspan:
106-116cm
Weight:
1.2-1.6kg

Population:

UK breeding is the number of pairs breeding annually. UK wintering is the number of individuals present from October to March. UK passage is the number of individuals passing through on migration in spring and/or autumn.
UK breeding:
1,300 pairs
UK wintering:
17,000 birds

Identifying features:

This bird species has different identifying features depending on sex/age/season.

Red-throated diver (summer plumage)

Red throated diver, breeding plumage
Feather colour: Black Brown Grey Red White
Leg colour: Black
Beak: Black Long Powerful Medium thickness
Natural habitats: Marine and intertidal Wetland

Red-throated diver (winter plumage)

Red throated diver, non-breeding plumage
Feather colour: Black Brown Grey White
Leg colour: Black
Beak: Black Long Powerful Medium thickness
Natural habitats: Marine and intertidal Wetland

Similar birds:

Adult black-throated diver in summer plumage
Black-throated diver
Shag illustration
Shag
Great crested grebe, summer plumage
Great crested grebe

Where and when to see them

Shetland is the UK stronghold for red-throated divers with other key populations on Orkney, the Outer Hebrides and the north Scottish mainland. They are also found along the whole of west Scotland south to the Mull of Kintyre. Outside the breeding season it is numerous along the UK's east coast, and occurs patchily along the west coast, with concentrations off west Scotland and around north-west Wales.

* This map is intended as a guide. It shows general distribution rather than detailed, localised populations.
  • Resident
  • Passage
  • Summer
  • Winter
Red-throated diver distribution map

Red-throated divers arrive on their breeding grounds in April and depart in September and October. Birds from further north start to be seen off the UK's east and west coasts in August and September reaching a peak in October. Most birds move back north in March and April.

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RSPB reserves

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