24 INDIAN SPOETING BIRDS 



Pink-headed Duck. 



* Rliodoiiessa caryophyllacea. Golahi sir, Hindusiani. 



The pink-headed duck stands quite alone in coloration 

 among our birds. Its body is as black as ink — the brownish 

 Indian ink ; its head is as pink as new blotting-paper, in the 

 case of the drake at any rate ; the duck's head is like the same 

 pink blotting-paper after it has become faded and soiled, with a 

 long black blot on the crown. Her plumage generally is duller 

 and rnstier than the drake's, and her bill is black, whereas his is 

 fleshy-white ; but the general resemblance is close. The young 

 are also duller than the old drake, have drab heads, and under- 

 neath are of a dirty mottled brown ; but the whole family are 

 easily distinguished by the buff tint of the quills of the wings, 

 noticeably contrasting in flight with the dark body. Young 

 drakes assume the white bill before getting the full plumage, 

 and the old ones in undress have the duck's black crown-stieak, 

 but otherwise do not change colour. 



The size of the pink-headed duck is about that of the mallard 

 or spotted-bill, but it is more slenderly built, the head and neck 

 being positively lean, and the latter is generally carried with a 

 backward curve. The weight is about a couple of pounds. 



This most extraordmary duck is a resident with us, but 

 unfortunately has a very limited range, being practically con- 

 fined to certain districts of Upper Bengal, being fairly common 

 in Purneah and Tirhoot, and also found in Bhagalpur and 

 Maldah ; outside this district it is rare everywhere, though stray 

 specimens have turned up as far away from its home as Nepal, 

 Delhi, Bhamo, and Madras, which localities about mark off its 

 limits to the north, west, east, and south. Latham, writing a 

 century ago, said it was common in Oudh ; but even if his 

 mformation was correct then, it is as rare there now as in the 

 north-west generally. I fear it is getting rarer still, as when 

 I was in India in the nineties one could generally see about half- 

 a-dozen in the Calcutta Market in a winter, though as much as 

 lis. 15 each would be asked for them ; they were kept alive, 



* Alius on plate. 



