eider duck

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noun

any of several large sea ducks of the genus Soamateria and allied genera of the Northern Hemisphere, the females of which yield eiderdown.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

Origin of eider duck

First recorded in 1850–55

The king eider duck (Somateria spectablis) is another species resembling the preceding and inhabiting the same coasts.
The New Gresham Encyclopedia|Various
Their houses were quite small, and the people themselves were dwarfs, who called the eider duck walrus.
Eskimo Folktales|Unknown
As the day declined, snow began to fall in large flakes like the down of the eider-duck.
A Book of Ghosts|Sabine Baring-Gould
The Eider Duck differs from all the birds of the same tribe hitherto described, in being essentially and absolutely a sea-bird.
British Birds in their Haunts|Rev. C. A. Johns

The nest of the Scoter is described as being like that of the Eider Duck, and similarly located.
British Birds in their Haunts|Rev. C. A. Johns