INDIAN DUCKS AND THEIR ALLIES. 597 



'' Young in down are described by Bfildamns as having the upper 

 parts dull olive-grey, with a buff spot on each shoulder, and the under- 

 parts buff, a buff stripe jmsses over each eye, and through the eye runs 

 a dark stripe, which divides into two behind the eye " (Salvadori). 



The habitat of the Red-crested Pochard may roughly be said to be the 

 countries surrounding the Mediterranean and (.^entral-Western India. 



It is common in South Russia, Turkestan, Persia, Afghanistan, 

 Beluchistan, and thence in winter into India. Throughout the coun- 

 tries of Southern Europe it is common, and it ascends North as a fre- 

 quent straggler to Northern France, England, occasionally as far as 

 Scotland, North Germany, where it breeds, and Central Russia. 



On the South coast of the Mediterranean it is much less common. 

 It is rare in Egypt and Tangiers, more common in Algiers and West of 

 Algiers, after which it has not been recorded further West. 



In India, the Red-crested Pochard occurs practically throughout the 

 whole of the North and Central India. It is common in the North- 

 West Provinces, the Punjab, Sind, Rajputana and Oudh, Central 

 India, and tlie Central Provinces, except in the South and the 

 greater part of Bengal. In Assam it is less common, but by no means 

 at all rare. Hume found it in Manipur in small numbers, and I have 

 myself seen, shot, or had it recorded tor me from Cachar, Sylhet and 

 Dacca. In the Sunderbunds I found it decidedly rare, but have had 

 it recorded as common by other sportsmen. In Southern India it 

 must be rare everywhere, and it seems also to be rare in the extreme 

 West, in Cutch, etc. There seem to be hardly any records of the bird 

 in Southern India, but Layard was certain he had met whh it in 

 Ceylon, and it doubtless, therefore, must occur at odd times throughout 

 the whole of the Indian Peninsula. 



I can find no signed records of its occurrence in Burma, but there 

 are anonymous, though apparently authentic, notes of its having been 

 occasionally found there. 



I have had it recorded from Chittagong, where, however, it is said 

 to be very rare. 



Although so many of these ducks have their homes quite close to 

 India, yet, they are, on the whole, rather late arrivals, coming into the 

 North and North-West India in the latter part of October and into 

 Bengal and further South, not until well into November. In Assam 



