GARGANEY, 183 



there in April, laying from ten to fourteen eggs, in a nest 

 formed of dry grass and placed in a bunch of reeds. The 

 egg is of a bufF colour, and measures one inch nine lines in 

 length by one inch and three lines in breadth. The food of 

 this species consists of seeds, slugs, insects, and their larvse. 



The Garganey is found in Spain about Aragon ; arrives 

 at Genoa in flocks, from February to April. Savi says it 

 visits Italy in March, and remains the summer ; and the 

 Prince of Canino says that at Rome it is common in summer. 

 Sir Thomas Reade sent the Zoological Society specimens of 

 the Garganey obtained in the vicinity of Tunis ; and it will 

 be recollected that this bird has, by some authors, been called 

 the African Teal. Keith Abbot, Esq. sent specimens from 

 Trebizond ; the Russian naturalists found it inhabiting the 

 countries of the Caucasus ; Colonel Sykes includes it among 

 his Birds of the Dukhun in India ; and Mr. Gould mentions 

 that it has been found on the Himalayan range. 



The adult male, as obtained here in March, has the bill 

 brown ; the irides hazel ; the forehead, top of the head, and 

 occiput, dark brown, forming a stripe which ends in a point 

 half way down the neck behind ; over the eye and ear-coverts, 

 on each side, and passing to the back of the neck under the 

 dark brown stripe, is a stripe of white ; cheeks, and sides of 

 the neck nutmeg brown, varied with short hair-like lines of 

 white ; the back dark brown, each feather edged with lighter 

 brown ; scapulars elongated, black, with a central stripe of 

 white ; wing-coverts bluish-grey ; speculum dull green, mar- 

 gined with white ; primaries brownish-black ; tertials bluish- 

 grey ; tail greyish-brown ; chin black ; neck in front, and the 

 whole of the breast dark brown, with pale brown crescentic 

 bands ; belly white ; sides and flanks varied with transverse 

 black lines, bounded by two broad bands ; under tail-coverts 

 mottled black and white ; legs, toes, and their membranes 

 greyish-brown. 



