Eurasian Wigeon Mareca penelope
Common or very common winter visitor and passage migrant, especially to The Wash and the Humber. Scarce in summer, and occasionally suspected of breeding. RBBP.
Eurasian Wigeon: left, Humber bank November 13th 2015 (Graham Catley); centre/right, Frampton Marsh January 20th 2019 and February 3rd 2019 (Neil Smith)
The British wintering population of Wigeon is currently around 260,000 birds and Lincolnshire holds around 18,000 of them. Birds arrive from Iceland, Scandinavia and Russia from October through to December. The Atlas estimated a wintering population of 10,000 in the late 1980s but suggested it could reach 25,000 in severe winters, which are few and far between in recent years. One of the finest ornithological experiences of the Lincolnshire winter is the sight and sound of 5,000 plus Wigeon taking to the air at Frampton Marsh. Most leave by April but with so many birds around it is not surprising that a few summer each year. In 2019 up to 28 birds were present across 10 sites in June. Pairs have been suspected of breeding in 5 of the last 20 years to 2019, but no confirmed breeding has been proved.
(Account as per new Birds of Lincolnshire (2021), included September 2022)