70 INDIAN SPOETING BIEDS 



the rule among the tune geese of the similarity of the male and 

 female being strictly observed, and the sooty-brown specimens 

 with dull brownish tints where the red ought to be being the 

 young of both sexes. Even these, however, are quite unmis- 

 takable. The bill and legs are black, the former being remark- 

 ably delicate and small, only about an inch long. 



The best record of the occurrence of this lovely bird in India 

 is that furnished by Mr. E. C. S. Baker, in his book on the Indian 

 ducks and their allies ; he says there that he " was fortunate 

 enough to see five specimens on a chur in the Brahmapootra, 

 just below Gowhatty ; they arose a long way off as the steamer 

 drove up stream towards them, but turned and flew past us 

 within sixty to a hundred yards, and there could have been no 

 possible chance of mistaking them." His friend, Mr. Mundy, 

 had previously communicated to him a good description of some 

 he had seen on the same river in Dibrugarh. As to the 

 record of 1836 in the Oriental Sporting Magazine, I have looked 

 this up, and quite agree with Blanford that the author of this 

 did not know what he was talking about ; so that these modern 

 ones, in my opinion, remain unique. The red-breasted goose 

 occurs in Europe, including England occasionally, but always 

 as a rarity ; it is, however, not really a very rare bird, being 

 common enough in Western Siberia, where it breeds, and coming 

 as near to us in winter as Persia and Turkestan. It does well 

 in captivity, and while this book was being written I had the 

 pleasure of inspecting a lovely pair which were deposited at 

 the Zoo en route from Germany to the Duke of Bedford's estate 

 at Woburn, where, I heard, there was already another. These 

 birds showed the tame disposition with which this species is 

 credited ; and I must say that if I got hold of a netted or wing- 

 tipped bird in India, I should not dream of killing it, but keep 

 it to send to Europe, since a photograph, if only of the head, 

 would be amply sufficient for the record. 



