354 Manual of the Game Birds of India. 



the water. It is a mere hollow, lined with 

 dry sedge or grass, and after the full 

 complement of eggs is laid, and the 

 duck has begun to sit, with down. The 

 number of eggs is usually ten or twelve, 

 but sometimes only eight are laid, and 

 occasionally as many as thirteen." 



The eggs of this species resemble those 

 of the Pochard and Scaup, but are rather 

 smaller. They measure from 2*15 to 2*4 

 in length and from i'55 to i'65 in breadth. 



The adult male has the whole head, 

 the crest, and the upper part of the neck 

 deep black, with a green or purple gloss, 

 according to the light in which the bird is 

 viewed. The lower part of the body, the 

 mantle, and the upper part of the breast 

 are black, with a smaller amount of gloss ; 

 the feathers of the breast margined with 

 white. The lower part of the breast, the 

 abdomen, the sides of the body, the 

 axillaries and the greater part of the under 

 wing-coverts are white ; the extreme lower 

 portion of the abdomen, the thighs, and 

 the under tail-coverts, black. The back 

 and the scapulars are black, very minutely 

 speckled with white. The upper wing- 

 coverts are plain brown. The rump and 

 the upper tail-coverts are deep black ; 

 the tail, dark brown. The outer primaries 



