422 WEB-FOOTED BIRDS. 



crescent. A white speculum on the wing. Sides of the bill red- 

 lead fading into orange, protuberance between the nostrils, the mar- 

 gins and posterior part of the under mandible, black ; nail ver- 

 milion, the anterior flat portion of the upper mandible whitish. 

 Irids white, tinged with straw-yellow. Legs scarlet with black webs, 

 and a tinge of black on the joints. Nostrils large, oval, and pervious, 

 opening into a protuberance which forms part of the forehead. 

 Toes long, the outer equal to the middle one. 



The female resembles the male, but is smaller, and the plumage 

 browner. Scapulars very narrowly edged with broccoli-brown. No 

 white mark beneath the eye, but the speculum like that of the male. 

 Bill black, slightly inflated at the base, tlje nail black. — The young 

 males resemble the female, but have small white spots before and 

 behind the eyes. 



i 



AMERICAN SCOTER DUCK. 



(Fuligula americana. Oidemia americana, Swains. Richard, and 

 Swains. North. Zool. ii. p. 450. Whistling Duck, Hudson's 

 Bay Residents. Cuscusitatum, Cree Indians.) 



Sp. Charact. — Entirely sooty black ; bill contracted behind the tip, 

 black, except the basal protuberance of the upper mandible, which 

 is entirely orange ; nostrils about the middle of the bill, red. 



This species, probably confounded with the Common 

 Scoter, is said to inhabit the shores of Hudson's Bay, 

 breeding between the 50th and 60th parallels, but does not 

 appear to frequent the interior. It lives and feeds princi- 

 pally at sea, and its flesh is rank and oily. The American 

 Scoter visits the coast and bays of Massachusetts and New 

 York in considerable numbers, associating with the Surf, 

 Velvet, Eider and other sea ducks ; and are brought oc- 

 casionally to Boston market, about the first week in 

 November. While here they appear to feed principally on 

 shell-fish ; particularly muscles ; and the flesh of the young 

 is tolerably palatable. 



