I40 DUCK SHOOTING. 



spots of white. The back is purphsh-black, with glossy- 

 reflections, as are also the upper wing-coverts. The 

 shoulder feathers and tertiaries are black, with blue, 

 green and purple reflections, and the longest of the ter- 

 tiary feathers is tipped with white. On the side of the 

 breast, just in front of the wing, is a broad white bar, 

 and below it, another bar, which is black. The sides 

 and flanks are finely waved with black lines on a brown- 

 ish-yellow ground, many of the feathers having a bar 

 of black, bordered with white at the extremities. The 

 under parts are pure white, but the under tail-coverts 

 are glossy black. The upper tail-coverts are long, fall 

 over the tail on either side, and are rich with metallic 

 reflections. The bill is deep red, with a black spot near 

 the base, a white spot on the side, a yellow border to 

 the base, and with a black nail. The eyes are bright 

 carmine red, surrounded by orange-red or scarlet eye- 

 lids. The legs and feet are yellow, with dusky joints 

 apd webs. 



The adult female is generally gray, or greenish-gray, 

 but her markings, in a general way, resemble those of 

 the male. She has the crest, but not so much of it as 

 the male. The throat and under parts are white; the 

 breast and sides greenish-gray, dotted with white mark- 

 ings; the upper parts are more brownish, and have 

 purple and bronzy reflections. The secondaries are 

 white-tipped. The bill is dusky, and there is a narrow 

 line of white all about it. The length is about 19 inches, 

 wing 9I inches. 



The wood duck is easily the most beautiful of North 



