SHOVELLEB i:i3 



The eggs of the Shoveller are smiilar in color to those of the 

 Mallard and Pintail, being usually pale olive buff or pale greenish 

 gray, and have thin shells with very little lustre. They are smaller 

 in size, however, and slightly different in shape. They are distin- 

 guishable from the eggs of the Mallard by their paler tint as Avell as 

 by their smaller size (Bent, 1902, p. 4). 



The downy young cannot be readily distinguished from otlier 

 ducks in that stage, for the bill at first shows little indication of the 

 broad spoon-like form which it takes on gradually as the bird ap- 

 proaches full size. 



The molt into the breeding plumage is slow. Beck (MS) states 

 that as late as January 2, 1911, Shovellers collected at Los Bafios, 

 ]\Ierced County, were still molting on the head and that but few were 

 in perfect feather. Young males often show curious combinations of 

 the juvenile and adult patterns of coloration. 



Shovellers are swift fliers and make a noticeable flapping noise 

 with their wings when rising from the water's surface. During 

 certain seasons they are restless and spend much of the time on the 

 wing. 



Nordhoff (1902, p. 213) states that on Elsinore Lake, Riverside 

 County, Shovellers were nnich tamer than other species of ducks, 

 sometimes allowing approach to within twenty or- thirty yards. They 

 do not gather into large flocks consisting purely of their own kind, 

 but both forage and travel in pairs or small companies, often associat- 

 ing with other species of ducks. 



As is evidenced by the character of the bill the Shoveller obtains 

 much of its food by skimming tlie water. The comb-like fringes along 

 the edges of the sensitive upper mandible, sometimes called lamellae, 

 are especially well developed and enable the bird by skimming the 

 surface to strain out plants and animals of very small size. The birds 

 can often be seen swimming with their heads partially submerged, 

 "gabbling'' or sifting the water as they go, and seldom raising the 

 head unless some large object is captured. In addition to the insect 

 food obtained on the surface of the water, the Shoveller feeds on 

 aquatic plants, grasses, and seeds which it procures in the mud near 

 shore. At Owens Lake, Inyo County, Nelson (in A. K. Fisher, 1893a, 

 p. 17) found the Shoveller feeding extensively on the larvae and pupae 

 of a small fly [Eplujdra hians) which abounded at the time in the lake. 



As a general rule this duck does not acquire much fat. When it 

 does, however, it makes as fine a table bird as exists in the state, and 

 by some is even considered superior to the Mallard. Its food insures 

 a good flavor as a rule, and the birds are usually nice and juicy at 

 least at the beginning of the hunting season. As the season advances 

 it is said to become somewhat poorer in flesh and in flavor. Its small 



