526 BRITISH BIRDS. 



said that the parents carry the young birds to it in their beaks one by one, 

 sometimes for great distances. 



It is difficult to imagine a more beautiful sight than a pair of Ruddy 

 Sheldrakes Avith their young, the duck enticing them to follow her in order 

 to hide amongst the reeds, whilst the drake swims about backwards and 

 forwards in an agitated manner, uttering a rather loud and monotonous 

 cry, intermediate in sound between that of the syllables hark and kerk. I 

 once surprised a brood of half-grown Ruddy Sheldrakes, at some little 

 distance from the water's edge, on the banks of Lake Tuzla, a salt lagoon 

 connected with the Black Sea. I tried to catch them l^efore they reached 

 the water, but they were too quick for me ; meanwhile the old birds flew 

 round and round within easy shot, uttering their peculiar cry, and trying 

 to draw off our attention from their brood. Like the Common Sheldrake, 

 the Ruddy Sheldrake differs in its habits from the more typical Ducks, one 

 of its peculiarities being, that when the young are hatched the drake takes 

 his share in looking after them. He does not moult into summer dress, 

 and consequently is not obliged to desert his mate at the most critical 

 period of her annual duties, to hide himself in the thick morasses. 



The adult male Ruddy Sheldrake has the head and upper neck chestnut- 

 buff, palest on the forehead, cheeks, and throat ; a narrow black band en- 

 circles the lower neck ; below this the upper back, mantle, scapulars, and 

 the whole of the underparts are rich chestnut ; the lower back is buff, 

 vermiculated with black ; the upper tail-coverts and tail are rich deep black 

 glossed with green ; the wings are very similar to those of the Common 

 Sheldrake, but the innermost secondaries have the entire outer web chest- 

 nut, and the inner web dark slate-grey. Bill, legs, and feet nearly black ; 

 irides dark hazel. The female closely resembles the male in colour, but 

 the black ring round the neck is absent, and the fore part of the head is 

 paler. Young in first plumage somewhat resemble females, but the wing- 

 coverts, the scapulars, and the innermost secondaries are suffused with 

 brown. Males of the year are without the black collar; and it is said by 

 Hume that adult males are Avithout it during the months of December, 

 January, and February; but the subject requires further investigation. 

 Young in down resemble those of the Common Sheldrake, but the brown 

 of the upper parts is paler, aiul the white of the underparts is suffused 

 with brown on the breast and belly. 



