Compared to common scoter, velvet scoter are heavily built with a chunky, wedge-shaped bill along with usually having white in the wing. Adult males have more yellow on the lower bill and white under the eye. These smart birds breed on the Russian tundra, across Scandinavia and along the coasts of the Baltic sea. In the UK, they're seen on the sea during winter.

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Fisher, C. T., ed. (2002). A Passion for Natural History: The Life and Legacy of the 13th Earl of Derby. National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside. ISBN 1-902700-14-7. The female garganey is like the male in eclipse plumage but paler. There is an obvious white spot near the bill. Despite their apparently docile nature, mallards are fascinating to observe. Their prenuptials are often quite aggressive and can involve several males chasing and forcing themselves upon a female. These are usually males that have missed out on pairing up the conventional way and instead choose to hang out in bachelor gangs. The female is chocolate brown with paler flanks, and white underparts, and the crest is shorter. She also may have white patches around the base of the bill. The male in eclipse plumage looks like the female. Anonymous (1875). Revised list of the vertebrated animals now or lately living in the gardens of the Zoological Society. Zoological Society of London. p.29.Distribution: During the breeding season, they’re most common northwards from the Northumberland coast and off the west coast of Scotland. During the winter, their range expands to include areas along the east and south coasts, parts of the southwest coast and some areas of the Welsh coast.

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Inglis, C. M. (1904). "The birds of the Madhubani subdivision of the Darbhanga district, Tirhut, with notes on species noted elsewhere in the district. Part VIII". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 16 (1): 70–75.These birds have a hook at the tip of the bill and lamellae along the edges to help grip fish, they specialise in diving for prey. Summer is also a time when young birds are beginning to make their own way in the world and many won’t yet have reached a recognisable plumage. Some look similar to females. The female is similar to the male in eclipse plumage and very similar to the female mallard. The head is grey and the tail is dull. The bill has orange sides, and the legs are orange. Livezey, B. C. (1998). "A phylogenetic analysis of modern pochards (Anatidae: Aythini)" (PDF). The Auk. 113 (1): 74–93. doi: 10.2307/4088937. JSTOR 4088937. Distribution: Widespread in England and along the Welsh coast during winter but more restricted to east and north-east England and the Midlands during summer, with some populations in parts of Scotland, Northern Ireland and the south coast of England.