76 BULLETIN 12ti. UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



As I knew nothing whatever about this duck and had no references 

 to it in my index, I appealed to Dr. John C. Phillips, who is prepar- 

 ing an extensive monograph on the ducks of the world, and he very 

 generously has sent to me his references and his unpublished manu- 

 scri]>t on this species. With deep gratitude to him for his unselfish 

 courtesy, I shall quote freely from his manuscript, merely selecting 

 and arranging such parts as it seems best to use. 



Spring. — Very little information and few dates are available for a study of the 

 migration of these ducks. According to Dybowski (1868) they arrive in Dauria in 

 April. Prjevalsky (1878) states that they appear at Lake Hanka from the middle of 

 Marcii to the middle of April, at which latter date Radde (186.3) saw them arrive 

 on the middle Amur. They appeared at Utskoi-Ostrog on May 3 (Middendorff, 1853) 

 and at Nikolaievsk on May 18 (Schrenck, 1860). On the upper Amur they did not 

 appear until early June. 



The time of breeding, so far as one can judge, is not particularly early. They are 

 said to nest early in June in Transbaikalia, and in east Siberia they begin to nest in 

 late May (Taczanowski, 1873) continuing through June and perhaps into July (Baker, 

 1908). 



Courtship. — The display as observed in captivity was first described by Finn 

 (1915). He describes it as essentially like that of typical ducks, but the erection of 

 the long crest made the head look enormous. He continues — "There was th.e same 

 rear up, with the head bent down, folloAved by an upjerk of the hind parts; the 

 long sickle-shaped tertials, so noticeable in this species, seemed little if at all ex- 

 panded, and were not so prominent in the display as one would have expected from 

 their abnormal character. But Avhat especially attracted my attention, as I had 

 noted the display of the male of this duck some time before, was that the females 

 displayed simultaneously with the males, and with the same gestures.'' 



Nesting. — The nest, so far as Icnown, is alwajs on the ground, built in swamps and 

 along the low-lying banks of the larger rivers. It is rather well built, of leaves, 

 grass, or ruslies, compactly put together and lined with a very heavy complement of 

 down. It is said to be not particularly well hidden, but hard to get at on accoutsi 

 of the treacherous nature of the ground (Baker, 1908). 



Eggs. — The eggs are six to nine in number, probably averaging eigiit. They are 

 smaller than those of the mallard and are colored like those of the gadwall, although 

 the yellow tinge is somewhat more pronounced (Taczanowski, 1873). The average of 

 21 eggs measiired by Jourdain was 56.2 by 39.65 mm., the maximum being 58.5 by 39 

 and 55 by 41 .5, the minimimi 53 by 41 and 57 by 38 mm. (Ilartert, 1920). The length 

 of the incubation period is not known. Baker (1908) seems to think that the drake 

 assists, at least occasionally, in the duties of incubation, but I hesitate in attribut- 

 ing such habits to the males of any Palaearctic ducks. Baker also says that the male 

 is seldom found far from the nest. 



Food. — ^There are no detailed notes available, but the food seems to be of a vegetable 

 nature (Stejneger, 1885; Radde, 1863). 



Behavior. — The falcated teal lacks much of the elegance of the true teal or the 

 mallard. It appears sliort, chunky, and large-headed for a surface-feeding duck. 

 The long sickle-shaped tertials and short tail give the body a very stumpy appearance. 

 Heinrotli (1911) says that a male in the Berlin Gardens always kept his head and 

 neck well drawn in, so tliat the mane lay on the upper part of his back. The writer 

 never saw these crest feathers lifted, and the impression created was more like that 

 of a diving duck. 



There are no recorded observations as to the flight, except that it is said to be 

 awift and teallike, which probably means that it is more erratic than that of the 



