# Barrow's goldeneye (*Bucephala islandica*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/barrows-goldeneye  
Data as of: 2026-11-14

Barrow's goldeneye (Bucephala islandica) is a living bird, a waterfowl in the family Anatidae and the order Anseriformes. Adults typically weigh about 921 g and have a typical wingspan of about 75.5 cm, placing the species in the small size class. It is an aquatic carnivore of wetland habitats, and it is partially migratory.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 730 g – 1.14 kg |
| Length | 43 cm – 49 cm |
| Wingspan | 67 cm – 84 cm |
| Lifespan | 15.3 years |
| Diet | Aquatic predator |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 18 years |
| Main food | arthropods |
| Habitat | wetland |
| Egg incubation | 30 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 9.5 |
| Age at maturity | 24 months |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Lifestyle | Aquatic |
| Migration | Partial |
| Brain mass | 6.07 g – 6.34 g |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Introduced range

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists it as introduced in 4 countries. Introduced: Belgium, Germany, Poland, United Kingdom. Source: https://griis.org/ (CC BY 4.0).

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Anseriformes
- family: Anatidae
- genus: Bucephala
- species: *Bucephala islandica* (J. F. Gmelin, 1789)

Synonyms: *Anas barrovii*, *Anas islandica*, *Clangula barrovii*, *Clangula barrovii*, *Clangula islandica*, *Clangula scapularis*, *Fuligula barrovii*, *Glaucionetta islandica*

## Common questions

### What is the scientific name of Barrow's goldeneye?

Barrow's goldeneye is Bucephala islandica, named by (J. F. Gmelin, 1789). It belongs to the family Anatidae.

### How much does Barrow's goldeneye weigh?

Adults typically weigh about 921 g, with values reported from 730 g to 1.14 kg. The species is in the small size class.

### What is the wingspan of Barrow's goldeneye?

The typical wingspan is about 75.5 cm, with values reported from 67 cm to 84 cm.

### Is Barrow's goldeneye endangered?

No. Its IUCN Red List category is Least Concern (LC) in the global assessment, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does Barrow's goldeneye live?

The typical lifespan is about 15 years, and the highest recorded value is 18 years.

### How many eggs does Barrow's goldeneye lay?

A clutch is 9 or 10 eggs, with 1 clutch per year. Incubation takes 30 days.

### Is the barrow's goldeneye an invasive species?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the barrow's goldeneye as introduced in 4 countries: Belgium, Germany, Poland and United Kingdom, but does not flag it as invasive in any of them.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AnimalTraits: a curated animal trait database for body mass, metabolic rate and brain size](https://animaltraits.org/), CC0 1.0, 1.0.7. Herberstein, M.E., McLean, D.J., Lowe, E. et al. (2022) AnimalTraits: a curated animal trait database for body mass, metabolic rate and brain size. Scientific Data 9: 265. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-022-01364-9. Data: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6468938
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS)](https://griis.org/), CC BY 4.0, 2026-11-13. Pagad, S., Genovesi, P., Carnevali, L., Schigel, D. & McGeoch, M.A. (2018) Introducing the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species. Scientific Data 5: 170202. https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2017.202. Country checklists published through GBIF by the IUCN SSC Invasive Species Specialist Group.
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Barrow's goldeneye (Bucephala islandica). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/barrows-goldeneye