98 ANATIDAR 
coarse grass or among other vegetation tall enough to 
conceal the sitting bird; in some cases the cover is but 
scanty. The nest is made of grass and lined with down, 
and is usually placed near the water’s edge, frequently along 
the shore of an inland lake. The eggs, of which eight to 
fourteen form the clutch, are pale greenish, turning to pale 
yellow as incubation advances. 
This Duck is increasing in our Isles as a nesting-species. 
It has been found breeding in the following counties :— 
England :—Cumberland, Northumberland, Durham, 
Yorkshire, Norfolk, Lincolnshire, Kent, Dorset, Notting- 
hamshire and Staffordshire. 
Scotland :—Haddington, Elgin, Kirkcudbrightshire, Dum- 
bartonshire, in the counties between the Forth and the Tay, 
northward to Sutherland, the Orkneys, and on Tiree, one of 
the Inner Hebrides (Saunders). 
Ireland :—In this country the Shoveler appears to be 
increasing not only as a breeding-species but also as a 
winter-visitor. It has nested, or has been met with in the 
nesting-season, in the following counties :—Kerry, Cork, 
Waterford, Clare, Wexford, Queen’s Co., King’s Co., West- 
meath, Dublin, Louth, Galway, Roscommon, Mayo, Shgo, 
Fermanagh, Monaghan, Tyrone, Antrim, Donegal (Ussher). 
Geographical distribution.—Abroad, it breeds over the 
greater part of EKurope, North Africa, Temperate Asia 
and North America. Its winter range extends to South 
Africa, India, China, Japan, Central America and Australia. 
DESCRIPTIVE CHARACTERS. 
PLUMAGE. Adult male nuptial_Head and upper neck, 
elossy-green ; lower neck and scapulars, white; wing-coverts, 
pale blue; alar speculum glossy-green, separated from the 
biue by a narrow white band; primaries, chiefly dark brown ; 
feathers of back, brown with hghter margins; rump, tail, 
and its coverts, blackish; breast and abdomen, rich chest- 
nut, flanks, speckled reddish-brown ; lower abdomen, white. 
Adult male, post-nuptial or eclipse.—Somewhat resembles 
the female, but the bright blue of the wing is retained and the 
general plumage is of a warmer brown. 
Adult female nuptial.—Head, neck, and back mottled with 
dark and light brown; wing-coverts, dull bluish ; speculum, 
much less glossy than that of the male; breast and abdomen, 
pale brown. 
