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The Eurasian wigeon (Mareca penelope) is a bird found in Sweden, Netherlands, Denmark, United Kingdom, Norway, United States, and 1 more countries. Lakes and wetlands across Europe and Asia. It eats leaves and other plant parts and seeds and nuts. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.

🏡 Where the Eurasian wigeon lives

Lakes and wetlands across Europe and Asia.

🍽️ What it eats

• 🌿 Leaves & plants80%
• 🌰 Seeds & nuts20%

A rough guide to its diet over a year. Source: EltonTraits (Wilman et al. 2014).

Conservation status

Hear the Eurasian wigeon

Recorded by Stanislas Wroza (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), xeno-canto XC872897. Trimmed to a few seconds.

Questions about the Eurasian wigeon

Where does the Eurasian wigeon live?

The Eurasian wigeon lives in Sweden, Netherlands, Denmark, United Kingdom, Norway, United States, and 1 more countries. Lakes and wetlands across Europe and Asia.

What does the Eurasian wigeon eat?

leaves and other plant parts (about 80%), seeds and nuts (about 20%). These are rough shares of its diet over a year, from the EltonTraits database.

Is the Eurasian wigeon endangered?

There are plenty of these birds. Its IUCN Red List category is Least Concern.

More birds from Europe

• Common linnet
• Grey wagtail
• Common swift
• Eurasian bullfinch
• Common reed warbler
• Common goldeneye

Sources: IUCN Red List (via Wikidata), EltonTraits 1.0 (Wilman et al. 2014), GBIF sightings for countries, Wikipedia. Last updated 2026-10-19.