34 INDIAN SPORTING BIRDS 



spite of its animal-feeding habits is often good eating, though 

 too frequently what Hume calls " frogg}'." It comes into India 

 early in October and may remain as late as May. It is a widely 

 ranging bird, extending to Norway in the breeding season, and to 

 North Africa in one direction and the Malay Peninsula in the 

 other, in winter. In Hindustani, besides the name given above, 

 which expresses the male's pied colouring, it is called Duharii 

 and Bohwara, while in Nepal it shares the name of Malac with 

 the white-e^'e ; in Sind it is called Tiirando ; Nalla chillmoa 

 in Telugu. 



Scaup. 



*Nyroca marila. 



The scaup, which in winter-time at any rate is chiefly a sea- 

 bird, feeding on shell-fish, has rarely occurred in India, and when 

 it does turn up in the wdiite-faced brown immature dress is likely 

 to be confused with the young of some of the other pochards, to 

 which group it belongs, its nearest ally here being the tufted 

 pochard, which is, indeed, called by some writers tufted scaup. 



The old drake and duck, however, are easily recognizable 

 close at hand, the former having a deep green-black head, black 

 breast, pencilled-grey back and white flanks ; the latter having a 

 brown head and breast, but also a grey back, and a very distinct 

 white face. The female tufted pochard often shows some white 

 here, but always has a dark back. Like tufted pochard, scaup 

 have yellow eyes and broad bills, but they are considerably bigger, 

 about equalling common red-headed pochards in size. From 

 these they can easily be distinguished by the white, which, like 

 tufted and white-eyed pochards, they have on the wings. 



The few scaup which have been reported from India have 

 turned up in widely separated localities, from Kashmir to 

 Lakhimpur, and south to Bombay and Cbittagong. In Oudh it 

 would appear to occur fairly frequently, the Rev. J. Gompertz 

 having shot eleven between 1897 and 1904 inclusive, as recorded 

 by Captain Wall, quoted by Mr. E. C. S. Baker, and other records 

 have before been made from the same province. 



Fiiligula on plate. 



