LONG-TAILED DUCK 135 
American Continents, extending to Japan in the Hast, and 
the United States in the West. 
DESCRIPTIVE CHARACTERS. 
PLUMAGE. Adult male nuptial.—Top of head and neck, 
pure white ; cheeks, delicate light grey, below each of which is 
a dusky brown patch extending to the side of the neck; entire 
back, blackish; scapulars white, most of them elongated, 
pointed, and drooping; inner secondaries, white ; breast, 
wing-coverts, and primaries, brownish- black ; abdomen and 
flanks, pure white; long central tail-feathers, black ; outer 
and shorter ones, whites 
Adult male, postnuptial or eclipse-—This plumage is 
assumed about the end of May. ‘The beautiful white of the 
head and neck is replaced to a great extent by dark brown, 
but the cheeks retain a hight buff and a very impure shading 
of white ; the back is brownish and the scapulars and inner 
secondaries are black with reddish-brown edges. 
Adult female nuptial—Top of head, back, and wings, 
brown; neck and stripe at the back of the eye, white ; 
cheeks, throat, and upper breast, light brown; abdomen, 
white; central tail-feathers short. 
Adult winter, male and female.—Simular to the respective 
nuptial plumages, though the male usually exhibits more 
white about the head. 
Immature, male and female.—Closely resembles the 
female plumage. 
Beak. Base and tip, black, middle portion of upper 
segment, rose-colour. 
FEET. Dull slate-colour ; webs, dusky. 
Ir1DEs. Reddish. 
AVERAGE MEASUREMENTS. 
TOTAL LENGTH ... 22 to 26 in., including the 
long central tail- feathers! 
WING ... ae ode 88 in. 
BEAK J ae 1 Es 
TARSO-METATARSUS .. Day ae 
IGG: 4 3 ae mn 2°1 x by 1°45 in. 
' Thave found that the long central tail-feathers, in a fully-matured 
male, average 8°5 inches in length. 
