Birds of Greenland Advent Calendar [1] Quiz

This bird lives and breeds in the northern areas of the world, including the Arctic. The snow bunting is a passerine (perching bird) and is the most northerly dweller of all passerines. As well as Greenland, it is commonly seen in Iceland, Russia, the very north of the USA and Norway.

In the winter, snow buntings head south and have been seen in Scotland, in the UK, and other countries of northern Europe. During migration, snow buntings can form flocks numbering several hundred birds.

There are no prizes for working out where the common name of this magnificent eagle comes from - just look at the photo. It is also called the sea eagle and the erne, depending on location. This eagle can be found in many northern areas, from Norway across to Japan.

The eagles found in Greenland are the largest of the species, and it is the national bird of the territory (the polar bear is the national animal). Birds pair for life and raise no more than two young at a time.

The Arctic tern manages two summers each year, one in the Arctic and the other in the Antarctic. Its migration route is the longest of any animal. Those that breed in Greenland make round trips of about 44,000 miles (71,000 km).

Arctic terns are found in many parts of North America, Europe and Asia during the summer months of the northern hemisphere. Their plumage is mostly grey, with a black head and a red beak and feet. These terns are carnivorous, feeding mainly on fish, crustaceans and insects.

The gyrfalcon is just one of the birds of prey found in Greenland - others include the kestrel, merlin and peregrine falcon. Snowy owls are also found there, but are too easily identified to challenge you. Gyrfalcons are the largest species of falcon.

Gyrfalcons are found in the northernmost areas of Europe, including Scandinavia, Russia and Iceland as well as Greenland. They are common in North America too. These birds don't build nests, instead using bare ledges on cliffs or looking for nests abandoned by other birds of prey. They are fiercely territorial, divebombing predators - even brown bears cannot consider themselves safe.

Identifying this one might have been easy as the name describes it perfectly. The red-throated diver is also called the red-throated loon and is the most widespread of the loon family. It breeds in the north of its range, which includes North America, Norway and other northern European areas, and northern parts of Asia.

It is migratory, and heads further south when winter arrives, with colonies found as far south as Florida in the USA and Spain in Europe. The red-throated diver is the smallest of the loons, and lives in coastal waters or lakes.

The bird is also called the Arctic fulmar to reflect its preference for northern climes. It is a seabird which can be found in the northern regions of both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The photo shows the colouration for those that live in the north. Birds that live in the more temperate regions further south have lighter feathers of white and grey, although an overlap is common.

Although fulmars resemble gulls they are more closely related to shearwaters and petrels. While Greenland has a healthy population, the largest colonies are found in Iceland. The UK also has an increasing number, with fulmars breeding all around the coast from Scotland to the south of England.

The eider is a sea dwelling duck which can be found around the southern coast of Greenland, around Canada and Alaska, eastern Siberia and around northern parts of Europe including the UK and Norway. The common eider is the largest of the eider ducks.

The male bird, pictured, has black and white plumage with green on its neck, while the female is a rather more drab brown. The birds breed in the Arctic region before heading south as winter comes in the northern hemisphere. The female plucks feathers from her own body to line the nests and these are still collected to use for stuffing pillows. Bed coverings were sometimes called eiderdowns in the past because of the feathers used, although this use is rarer in modern times.

This member of the flycatcher family is found all across Europe and Asia, and has also managed to establish itself in coastal regions of Canada and Alaska, as well as Greenland. It is migratory, spending the winters in Africa but heading north again to breed.

The photo shows a female - the male has more black on its wings and has grey plumage in the breeding season. The birds nest in burrows or crevices and the female (who does most of the brooding) lays up to four eggs at a time. The young become independent very quickly, in around a month.

These distinctive birds are numerous in Greenland and in many other northern regions, including the eastern coasts of the USA across to Norway and Scotland in the UK. The white patches on the wings and bright orange red legs and feet make them easy to spot.

Guillemots feed by diving into the sea for fish and crustaceans and live in colonies on sea cliffs around the coasts of the countries in which they are resident.

The picture shows the rock ptarmigan in its winter plumage, adopted to provide camouflage against the snowy conditions. As well as Greenland, the bird can be found across various Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Europe and North America.

In spring, the birds moult and grow brown feathers. The male has a distinctive black eye stripe, which is clearly shown in the photo. The rock ptarmigan is relatively tame, as predators are few, with the golden eagle being the only bird likely to catch one.