THE SHOVELLER 



By T. GILBERT PEARSON 



^i)t Rational ^gsfociation of Huliuljon .^^ocicties; 



EDUCATIONAL LEAFLET NO. 84 



The most characteristic feature of the Shoveller is its great bill, which 

 measures about two and a half inches long and nearly one and a quarter 

 inches in width. Spoonbill is the name by which this duck is known to many 

 gunners; other names are S wabble-bill, Shovel-bill, and Cow-frog. Despite 

 its large bill, which seems entirely out of all proportion to the size of the bird, 

 the male Shoveller is a particularly beautiful Duck, and because of its strik- 

 ing green head and reddish belly it is sometimes mistaken for a male Mal- 

 lard. The female, although she has an equally large bill, is not adorned with 

 the bright plumage of her mate — in fact it is a common characteristic among 

 water-fowl that the female wears a more somber plumage than does the drake. 



Throughout the eastern and central United States Shovellers are rarely 

 seen in summer. They begin to arrive from the North upon the approach of 

 cold weather, usually among the first Ducks to appear, and frequently are 

 found in company with Teals or Pintails. To see them one should go to such 

 fresh-water or brackish-water marshes as are common along the Atlantic 

 Coast from Maryland southward. In the lower Mississippi Valley, Shovellers 

 are very plentiful, and they occur also in large numbers at many places on the 

 Pacific Coast. Some individuals go as far south as Central America. 



The student does not progress far in the study of wildfowl before he dis- 

 covers that the family Anatida is divided into five subfamilies, one of which is 

 known as "River and Pond Ducks." To this group belong the Mallard, Black 

 Duck, Pintail, Gadwall, Widgeon, Shoveller, and our three American Teals. 

 They are grouped together under this title because of their habit of feeding in 

 the shallow backwaters of rivers, ponds, and lakes, and in marshes. The "Bay 

 and Sea Ducks," which constitute another subfamily, are usually found in deep 

 water, and frequently dive many yards for their food. 



If you slip up to a Shoveller while he is getting his breakfast, you will 

 find him dabbling in water usually but a few inches deep. Here he will skim 

 the surface, catching such insects and larvae as may happen to be floating by; 

 and from the mud he will collect seeds and such edible animal-matter, as 

 crustaceans, and some mollusks. Sometimes the bird will "tip up" while 

 feeding. In this way it can reach downward several inches, when only the 

 rear end of the body will remain in sight, the tail pointing directly upward. 

 While thus engaged a flock of Spoonbills presents a most ludicrous appearance. 



Where suitable vegetable food is to be found, the Shoveller does not pass it 

 by. In many favorite haunts there grows a little tuber known as the wild 



(S6) 



