SA AMERICAN WIGEON. 
brown, glossed with grey, each feather marked across with 
small zigzag blackish lines; on the lower part the back is 
brown,- waved in like manner with brown and white. 
The wings have the second feather the longest, but the first 
nearly as long; greater wing coverts, white, slightly marked 
with brown and tipped with black; lesser wing coverts, brown; 
primaries, brown. ‘The secondaries have the speculum on the 
outer webs green, edged with black above and below. The 
tertiaries are blackish brown, with a tinge of green on the 
outer webs and brown on the inner, bordered with white. 
Tail, brown—it is slightly pointed, the middle feathers being 
elongated; upper tail coverts, brown, barred with paler brown 
and white; under tail coverts, brownish black, with a tinge of 
green. Legs and toes, dark brown; webs, dark brown. 
The female is in length about one foot nine inches. Head, 
erown, and neck, yellowish white, thickly speckled with black. 
The breast with very little rufous. Back, dark brown, edged 
and faintly barred with pale brown and white. 
The young male at first resembles the female, and does not 
acquire his full distinctive plumage till the second year. Wilson 
says these birds are subject to a regular change every spring 
and autumn. It appears that the ‘Act of Uniformity’ is 
infringed by most, if not all, of the males of the Duck tribe. 
