206 MERGIDiE. 
The Velvet Scoter [O. fusca) is most probably an occasional 
winter straggler in the Straits^ and should be looked for. The 
adult male has reddish legs and orange bill ; the alar speculum 
in both sexes is white, which will serve to distinguish the 
species. 
Length about 23 inches. 
Family Mergid^. 
290. Me ROUS ALBELLus (Linn.). The Smew. 
The Smew occurs in some seasons about the Straits in im- 
mature plumage ; but I never heard of an adult of any of the 
MerffidcB being obtained. The immature males of this and the 
next two species can be at once distinguished by the trachea, 
which in the males has more or less bony enlargement at the 
base, while in the females it is uniform in size throughout the 
entire length. 
The Smew is the smallest of the family, and has sixteen 
tail-feathers. It measures from 14 to 17"5 inches in length, 
females being the smallest. 
291. Mergus serrator, Linn. The Red-breasted Mer- 
ganser. 
This species is not mentioned in Favier's MS., but is found 
in some winters in considerable numbers in the Bay of Gib- 
raltar, and is generally seen during December and January. 
I never, however, met with an adult male. 
Total length about 21 inches. 
292. Mergus merganser, Linn. The Goosander. 
The Goosander is recorded by Favier as having been once 
obtained by him near Tangier in October 1862. I saw another 
which had been found dead on the shore near that town during 
the winter of 1 869-70, the only instance in which I met with 
the species. 
The Goosander may be distinguished from the other Euro- 
pean Mergidce by its large size, measuring from 25^ to 26^ 
inches in length. 
