398 Manual of the Game Birds of India. 



the too-confiding bird lay a score or more 

 eggs before the wary man thinks it prudent 

 to cease his depredations, and allow the 

 Goosander to sit upon the rest for fear 

 of spoiling his next year's harvest. If 

 these boxes be not provided, and no 

 hollow trees are available, the Goosander 

 finds a hole under a rock or a cleft in the 

 cliff, and has been known to utilise the 

 old nest of a crow or bird of prey in a 

 tree or the top of a pollard willow." 



The Goosander commences to build 

 its nest as early as the end of April, and 

 eggs may be found up to the middle of 

 June. The eggs are eight to twelve in 

 number. Most of the eggs are perfect 

 ellipses, rather elongated ; a few have one 

 end rather more pointed than the other. 

 The shell is smooth and fairly glossy. 

 In colour the eggs are a warm creamy 

 buff. They measure from 2*5 to 2*9 in 

 length, and from i '8 to i '9 in breadth. 



The adult male has the whole head, 

 crest and upper neck, glossy black. The 

 lower neck, the upper part of the mantle, 

 the whole lower plumage, sides of the 

 body, axillaries and under wing-coverts are 

 white, tinged with salmon or pink during 

 fife. The thighs and the sides of the 

 rump are white, vermiculated with grey. 



