256 ZOOLOGY. 



The shoveller or micoine is rather abundant on the Pacific coast, where I have obtained 

 specimens both at San Francisco and Puget Sound. S. 



The shoveller seems to be only a winter visitor in the Territory, arriving in October and 



leaving with most of the winter ducks in March or April. C. 



/ 



CHAULELASMUS STREPERUS, (Linn.) Gray. 



Gadwall; Gray Duck. 



Anas strepera, LINN. Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 200. GMELIN, I, 520. LATH. Ind. II, 1790, 849. WILSON, Am. Orn, 

 VIII, 1814, 120 ; pi. Ixxi. BON. Obs. 1825, No. 257. AUD. Orn. Biog. IV, 1838, 353 ; pi. 348. 

 IB. Syn. 378. IB. Birds Amer. VI, 1843, 254; pi. 388. TEMMINCK, Man. II, 838. (European.) 

 Anas (Chauliodus) strepera, SWAINSON, F. Bor. Am. IT, 1831, 440. 

 Anas (Boschas) strepera, NUTT. Man. II, 1834, 383. 

 BAIED, Gen. Eep. Birds, 782. 



SP. CH. Male: Head and neck brownish white, each feather spotted with dusky ; the top of head tinged with reddish. 

 Lower part of neck, with fore part of breast and back, blackish, with concentric narrow bars of white, giving a scaled 

 appearance to the feathers. Interscapular region, outermost scapulars, and sides of the body, finely waved transversely with 

 black and white. Middle wing coverts chestnut, the greater velvet black, succeeded by a pure white speculum, bordered 

 externally by hoary gray, succeeded by black ; crissum and upper tail coverts black. Longest tertials hoary plumbeous gray. 

 Innermost scapulars with a reddish tinge. Inside of wing and axillars pure white. Bill black. 



female with the bill dusky, edged with reddish. Wing somewhat like that of the male, but with the chestnut red more 

 restricted. Length, 22 ; wing, 10. 50 ; tarsus, 1. 64 ; commissure, 2. 04. 

 Hob. North America generally, and Europe. 



This bird is found sparingly on Puget Sound. In 1854 I was fortunate enough, through the 

 kindness of George Gibbs, esq., to obtain a beautiful specimen of the adult male in perfect 

 mature plumage, which was killed in the vicinity of Port Townsend, Puget Sound. A beautiful 

 specimen of this species I saw in March, 1857, in the interesting collection of Mr. Gruber, an 

 enthusiastic taxidermist residing in San Francisco. In both specimens (Mr. Gruber s and my 

 own) the chestnut-red patch on the wing is strongly marked. 



In following the line of the survey of the proposed northern route for a Pacific railroad across 

 the continent, most of which fell between the 46th and 48th parallels of north latitude, our 

 party passed through the breeding grounds of vast numbers of ducks. Minnesota, as its Sioux 

 name implies, means the &quot; land of water, 7 (J/mne, water, sota, land or country,) and so, indeed, 

 it is. For 250 miles west of the Mississippi river we were scarcely ever out of sight of some 

 lake or pond, and frequently within the scope of our vision might be seen between 15 and 20 

 lying around us in different directions, varying in size from that of small pools to that of lakes 

 a mile or more in length. These lakes all Avere more or less adapted as breeding places for 

 many species of this family, and, from the numbers of ducks found upon them, their natural 

 advantages did not seem to be neglected. The species were principally mallards and teal, 

 although the gadwall and several others were not uncommon. S. 



MARECA AMERICANA, (Gmel.) Stephens. 



Bald pnte ; American &quot;VVitlgeoii. 



Anas Americana, GMELIX, Syst. Nat. I, 1788, 526. WILSON, Am. Orn. VIII, 1814, 86 ; pi. Ixix. BON. Obs. No. 



259. AUD. Orn. Biog. IV, 1838, 337 ; pi. 345. IB. Syn. 1839, 279. 

 Mareca americana, STEPH. Shaw s Gen. Zool. XII, n, 1824, 135. Sw. F. Bor. Am. II, 1831, 445. BON. List, 1838. 



BAIBD, Gen. Rep. Birds, 783. 

 Anas (Boschas) amerieana, Nuttall, Man. II, 1834, 389. 



