MERGANSERS {Mergns americanus) are 

 large ducks of unusual beauty of plumage, 

 but otherwise of comparatively little inter- 

 est to sportsmen, since their flesh is wholly 

 unfit for the table. Their food consists very 

 extensively of fish, a diet that gives a very 

 strong and rank flavor to the flesh of any 

 bird. That they are excellent divers and 

 swimmers is amply proven by the fact that 

 they pursue and catch fish under water. 

 The bill of the Merganser is quite slender 

 and cylindrical, the edges being provided 

 with sharp saw-teeth to enable them to 

 firmly hold their finny prey. 



This species, although often frequenting 

 salt water, is very partial to fresh-water 

 lakes, creeks and rivers. They remain in 

 such places during winter, just as far north 

 as the water remains open. They are known 

 by many local names, among the most com- 

 mon of which may be mentioned "Goosan- 

 der," "Saw-bill," "Buff-breasted Shel- 

 drake," "Fishing Duck" and "Weazer." 

 It is well to note some of the major differ- 

 ences between this species and the next. 

 The male Merganser has a somewhat puffy 

 head, but no distinct crest as does the fol- 

 lowing. The salmon-colored breast and 

 under parts are unmarked. The females merganser ( ? T ) 



are more confusing, for both species have red-breasted merganser 



crests, but that of the present is heavier and (9,6) 



browner. An infallible mark of distinction 



is the nostril, which in this species is just midway between the eye and tip 

 of bill, while in the next it is located nearer the eye. The Merganser occurs 

 throughout North America, breeding locally from the Northern States, 

 northward. The eggs are laid in hollow trees or, in the far North, usually 

 on the ground. 



RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS (Mergus senator) share most of the 

 local names with the preceding species. They are, however, more commonly 

 found on salt than on fresh water. They are cosmopolitan in distribution, 

 nesting on the ground in Canada and spending the winter throughout the 

 United States, but most abundantly on the coasts. 



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