Goldeneye (duck)
Bucephala is a genus of diving ducks found in the Northern Hemisphere. The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek boukephalos, "bullheaded", from bous "bull", and kephale, "head", a reference to the crest of the bufflehead making its head look large.
The bufflehead was formerly treated as the only member of the genus while the goldeneyes were incorrectly placed in Clangula, the genus of the long-tailed duck, which at that time was placed in Harelda. It may yet be correct to recognise two genera, as the bufflehead and the two goldeneyes are well diverged. In this case, Bucephala would be restricted to B. albeola and the name Glaucionetta resurrected for the goldeneyes.
Species
The three living species are:| Image | Scientific name | Common Name | Distribution |
| Bucephala clangula | Common goldeneye | Canada and the northern United States, Scandinavia, the Baltic States, and northern Russia | |
| Bucephala islandica | Barrow's goldeneye | northwestern North America | |
| Bucephala albeola | Bufflehead | North America and the southern United States. |
Known fossil taxa are:
- Bucephala cereti
- Bucephala ossivalis, which was very similar to the common goldeneye and may even have been a paleosubspecies or direct ancestor
- Bucephala fossilis
- Bucephala angustipes
- Bucephala sp.