HOODED MERGANSER 159 
ereenish-black), and a black patch surrounding the eye which 
reaches in front as far as the base of the beak ; neck, breast, 
abdomen, and under tail-coverts, white ; wings, chiefly white, 
barred with black; primaries and tail-feathers, brownish- 
black ; upper tail-coverts, brownish ; back, black ; scapulars, 
white; flanks, finely pencilled with grey; from the upper 
part of the back a narrow curved black line extends 
forwards over the root of the neck; another curved lne 
passes across the front of the wing. 
Adult male, post-nuptial or eclipse-—Resembles the 
female plumage, but at once distinguishable by the presence 
of the two narrow curved black lines described above. 
Adult female nuptial—Head, crest, and back of neck, 
chestnut ; black patch in front of eye ; round the neck is a 
collar of light greyish-brown; back, lighter in shade than 
in the male. 
Adult winter, male and female.—Similar to the respective 
nuptial plumages. 
Immature, male and female.—The back and wings are 
to a large extent mottled-grey, and there is no black patch 
on the face. 
Beak. Slate-blue; serrated like that of the Merganser, 
but much shorter in proportion. 
Fret. Dull bluish-grey. 
TRIDES. Red. 
AVERAGE MEASUREMENTS. 
TOTAL LENGTH ... ... 17°5 in. Female smaller. 
WING ae an a Gis. 
BEAK Sas ace sti ay EQS. 
TARSO-METATARSUS aoe 1 bs 
EGe e. rf 9 x We 4aime 
HOODED MERGANSER. JWergus cucullatus (Linn:eus). 
Coloured Figures.—Gould, ‘ Birds of Great Britain,’ vol. v, pl. 
36; Dresser, ‘ Birds of Europe.’ vol. ix, pl. 696; Lilford, 
‘Coloured Figures,’ vol. vii, pl. 61. 
The Hooded Merganser, a North American species, is an 
extremely rare wanderer to British waters. Ireland has 
ylelded most records, about six in number. Only three of 
these are thoroughly substantiated. Mr. Ussher has failed 
to trace two specimens supposed to have been shot and 
preserved ; one stated to have been obtained in 1840 at 
